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BPUMBV A CLARKE, LTf . L1TH09. MULL A T, u LONDON
Figs. 73—75 Coai,-Tit.
76—77 Marsh-Tit.
78—81 Blue Tit.
82 Crested Tit.
83—84 Nuthatch.
85—87 Wren.
88—90 Tree Creeper.
^
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34
100
*i&
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9
Figs. 91 Pied Wagtaii,.
92 White Wagtail.
93 Grey Wagtail.
94 Blue-Headed Wagtail.
95—96 Yellow Wagtail.
97- -100 Tree-Pipit.
loi Meadow-Pipit.
Figs. 102 Rock-Pipit.
103 Golden Oriole.
104 — 108 Red-Backed Shrike.
109 WooDCH.\T Shrike.
no Pied Flycatcher.
Ill— 113 Spotted Flycatcher.
PL. II.
SRUUtV 4 CkAPKC. LTD.. LITHOS. HULL «N0 LONDON
Figs. 32 — 34 Whitethroat.
35—37 Lesser Whitethroat.
38 — 41 Blackcap.
42 — 44 Garden Warbler.
45 Dartford Warbler.
46—48 Golden-Crested Wren.
Figs. 49—51 Chiffchaff.
52—54 Willow-Warbler.
55 Wood-Warbler.
56 — 57 Reed-Warbler.
58—60 Marsh-Warbler.
61—62 Sedge-Warbler.
63 Grasshopper Warbler.
Figs. 64 Savi's Warbler.
65—67 Hedge-Sparrow.
68 Bearded Reedling.
69 Long-Tailed Tit.
70 Dipper.
71—72 Great Tit.
PL.;.
• ft •
•'■7^
10
12
U>
zi
27
23
X8
•
Figs. I — 4 Missel Thrush.
5 — 9 Song Thrush.
lo — 17 Blackbird.
Figs. 18 — 19 Ring Ouzei..
20 Whe.\te.4R.
21— ^j Whinchat.
j 23 Stonechat.
Figs. 24 Redstart.
25—28 Redbreast.
29 — 31 Nightingale.
BRITISH BIRDS
WITH THEIR
Rests akd Eggs
IN SIX VOI.UMES
ORDER PASSERES
(First Part)
. By ARTHUR G. BUTLER, Ph.D., F.L.S., F.Z.S., F.E.S.,
Corresponding Member of Various Foreign vSocieties
Author of "British Birds' Eggs, A Handbook of British Oology" (Illustrated by the Author)
"Favourite Foreign Cage-Birds" And numerous vScientific Works and Memoirs
DEALING WITH various BRANCHES OF ZOOLOGY
ILLUSTRATED BY
F. W. FROHAWK, M.B.O.U., F.E.S.
VOLUME I,
BRUMBY & CLARKE, Limited,
Baker Street, Hull, and 5, Farringdon Avenue, London, E.C.
CONTENTS
Those marked thus, * not being recognised as British Birds, are not figfured.
Acce7itor collar is
Accentor viodularis -
Acredula caudata
Acrocephalus aqjiaticus
Acrocephahis pal list r is
Acrocephalus pkragmitis -
Acrocephalus strepencs
*Acrocephalus turdoides
*A'edon galactodes
Alpine Accentor
*American Robin
An thus campestris
*Anthus cervinus
Anthus obscurus
Anthus pratensis
Anthus richardi
* Anthus spipoletta
Anthus ttivialis
Aquatic Warbler
Barred Warbler
Bearded Reedling -
Blackbird - - - -
Blackcap - - - -
Black Redstart
*Black-Tliroated Thrush -
*Black -Throated Wheatear
Blue-Headed Wagtail
Blue-Tit - - - -
Cert Ilia familiar is
Chiffchaff-
Cinclus aquaticus
Coal-Tit - - - -
Crested-Tit
Cyanecula suecica
Dartford Warbler
Daulias luscinia
133
129
145
121
112
117
108
116
106
133
28
199
199
205
195
202
205
191
121
77
141
19
69
44
27
33
184
157
172
96
137
151
161
48
81
57
*Desert Wheatear
Dipper - - -
Erithacus rubecula -
Fieldfare - - -
Fire-Crested Wren -
Garden Warbler
Golden-Crested Wren
Grasshopper Warbler
*Great Reed- Warbler
Great Tit -
Gre3' Wagtail -
Hedge-Sparrow
*Hypolais icterina
*Icterine Warbler
Isabelline Wheatear-
Lesser Whitethroat -
Locustella lusci^iioides
Locustella nczvia
Long-Tailed Tit
Marsh-Tit
Marsh-Warbler
Meadow- Pipit -
Missel Thrush -
Motacilla alba -
Motacilla /lava -
Motacilla lugubris
Motacilla melajiopc -
Motacilla rail -
^Monticola saxatilis
Nightingale
Nuthatch -
*Orphean Warbler
33
137
52
14
89
73
84
123
116
147
181
129
107
107
32
65
127
123
145
154
112
195
3
180
184
176
181
187
28
57
165
69
CONTENTS.
Panurus biarmicus -
Parus ater - - -
Parus ccBfulcus - - -
Parus cristatus-
Parus major - - -
Parus palustris
Phylloscopus rufus
Phylloscopus sibilatrix
Phylloscopus superciliosus -
Phylloscopus trochilus
Pied Wagftail - - -
Pratincola rubetra
Pratincola rubicola -
Redbreast- - - -
Red-Spotted Bluethroat -
Redstart - - - -
*Red-Throated Pipit -
Redwing . . .
Reed-Warbler -
Regulus cristatus
Regulus ignicapillus -
Richard's Pipit
Ring-Ouzel
Rock- Pipit
*Rock Thrush -
*Rufous Warbler
Ruticilla phoenicurus -
Ruticilla titys -
Savi's Warbler -
Saxicola cenanthe
*Saxicola descrti
*Saxicola isabellina
*Saxicola stapazina -
Sedge-Warbler
*Siberian Ground Thrush
Sitta ccesta
141
151
157
161
147
154
96
103
92
99
176
33
37
52
48
40
199
II
108
84
89
202
25
205
28
106
40
44
127
29
33
32
33
117
28
165
Song Thrush -
Stonechat
Sylvia atricapilla
Sylvia cinerea -
Sylvia curruca -
Sylvia hortensis
Sylvia nisoria -
*Sylvia orphea -
Sylvia undata -
Tawny Pipit
*Tichodroma muraria -
Tree-Creeper -
Tree- Pipit
Troglodytes parvulus -
*Turdus atrigularis
Turdus iliacus -
Turdus nierula -
*Turdus 7nigratorius -
Turdus musicus
Turdus pilaris -
* Turdus sibiricus
Turdus torquatus
Turdus varius -
Turdus viscivorus
*Wall-Creeper -
*Water-Pipit
Wheatear
Whinchat - - -
White's Thrush
Whitethroat
White Wagtail -
Willow Warbler
Wood Warbler -
Wren - . .
Yellow-Browed Warbler
Yellow Wagtail
7
37
69
62
65
73
77
69
81
199
175
172
191
168
27
II
19
28
7
14
28
25
17
3
175
205
29
Z2,
17
62
180
99
103
168
92
187
ERRATA ET CORRIGENDA.
Plate I of Eggs— figs. 21 and 22 Stonechat ; 23 Winchat.
Page 37, line three from bottom— /or "Whinchat," read Stonechat.
Page 41, line ten from hoVlora.— before "lateral," insert often. (The fact
times both lateral and vertical at the same moment.)
Page 56, line two from top— /or " become," read became.
Page 83, line six from bottom— /)>- " is somewhat," read is a somewhat
Page 119, line twelve from top— /)r " similiar," read similar.
that the movement is some-
BRITISH BIRDS,
With their Nests and Eggs.
ORDER PASS E R ES.
THIS group of Birds has always been a favourite with me, as Avith most
students of the feathered race. I have taken and preserved both nests and
eggs of most of the British species, and have studied the habits of mau}^ of them
in captivity, as well as in a wild state : possibh- for this reason, the task of
preparing this portion of the present Work has fallen to my share, instead of
that of some more erudite Ornithological writer.
The Order Passeres (following the classification adopted by Howard Saunders
in his admirable " Illustrated Manual ") includes seventeen families, the members
of which are mostly suitable for aviarj^ or cage-life ; of these the Turdida (Thrush-
like birds), the Fringillida: (Finches), and A/aiididcc (Lark-like birds) find favour
with the larger number of Aviculturists.
The famil}^ Turdidcr, the first on our list, has been sub-divided into three
sub-families : —
I. — Turdina (Thrushes) in which the first plumage is spotted above and below.
2. — Sylviincc (Warblers) in which the young closely resemble their parents
excepting in their paler or dxiller colouring.
2 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
3. — AccciitoriiHc (Accentors) including our so-called "Hedge-Sparrow," birds
which, though spotted after the manner of true Thrushes when the}' leave the
nest, exhibit aiifinity to the Titmice in their strong straight subconical bills,
rounded wings witli short bastard-primary (the first feather in the wing), and
strong scaled feet : the latter have the outer and middle toes united and the upper
extremity of the tarsus is feathered.
In their habits the Accentors seem to me more nearly to resemble the Tits
than the Thrushes. Not only do their quick jerk}- movements and acrobatic actions
remind one of the former ; but, like the Tits, they are largely seed-eaters.
The Thrushes of Great Britain are represented by eight genera: — Tiirdiis
(Thrushes so-called) ; Moiiticola (Rock-Thrushes) ; Saxicola (Wheatears) ; Pratincola
(Chats) ; Kitticilla (Redstarts) ; Cyanecula (Blue-throats) ; Erithacits (Redbreasts) ;
and Daulias (Nightingales).
The more typical Thrushes are the largest members of the Sub-family ; they
are bold, handsome, strongly-built birds, with a vigorons direct flight, at times
somewhat sinuous but generally in a straight line. On the earth they proceed,
either by running for short stages, with the head depressed and neck somewhat
extended (but, at the end of each stage, assnming an erect and attentive posture,
sometimes with a simxiltaneons elevation of the tail) ; or, if in a hurry, they clear
the ground by long hops. Some of these are admirable songsters, and consequently
are greatly sought for as cage-birds. —
Excepting in ver}' se\'ere weather. Thrushes are ver}' shy of entering traps ;
they also show considerable cunning in upsetting some forms of net-traps, especially
that known to bird-catchers as the 'Caravan': indeed it is rare to find any but
birds of the year caught by this ingenious contrivance. This fact is perhaps rather
an advantage than otherwise to the trapper, for young birds not onl}' become more
rapidly reconciled to captivity, but naturally last longer, as song-birds, than those
which have spent several years of their lives in freedom.
All the typical Thrushes build open cup-shaped nests, the walls of which are
strongly built, usually with a lining of mud, clay, or cow-ditng, and in most cases
with a thick outer lining concealing the mud : the eggs usually number from four
to six and, more frequently than not, are of some shade of green marked with
some shade of brown.
A. G. BUTLER.
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Family— TURDIDAl. Siibfamily—TURDINAl.
The Missel Thrush.
Turd lis viscivorus, LiNN.
THIS, the largest of our resident Thrushes, breeds throughout the suitable
districts of temperate Europe, from Norway southward to Spain, and
even to Northern Africa. Eastward, its range extends through Turkestan to the
North-western Himalayas and Lake Baikal in Siberia; it is resident in many
of the milder regions, but the greater number winter in Southern Europe
and Northern Africa, the Siberian birds migrating to Northern India, Persia,
and Africa north of the Sahara.
In Great Britain the Missel Thrush is generally distributed throughout
England and Wales ; in Ireland also, since 1800, it has become tolerably
common; in Scotland its range has gradually extended northwards throughout
most of the Hebrides; in the Orkneys it has appeared after easterly gales,
tut from Shetland it has not been recorded.
The upper parts of the adult bird are greyish olive brown, slightly
darker on the head, and slightly more golden on the lower back; the variation
of tint is, however, barely perceptible; the under parts (excepting the chin
and throat, which are white, and the cheeks which are huffish white) are buff,
strongly pronounced in young birds, but growing paler year by year until,
in old birds, it becomes huffish white; the fore-chest and flanks are of a
deeper buff, the cheeks and sides of neck indistinctly streaked with greyish
brown and a few spear-shaped spots; on the chin and throat the spots are
'more arrow-shaped, on the fore-chest black and spear-shaped, and on the
remainder of the itnder parts fan-shaped; the upper wing-coverts are broadly edged
at the tips with dull white, the flights are slaty-grey, the primaries with
white outer edges, the secondaries externally suffused with buflfish, and nar-
rowly tipped with white; under wing-coverts and axillaries pure white; tail
feathers smoky-grey, narrowly pale-edged towards the tips; bill dark brown,
paler towards the base, especially on the lower mandible; legs pale brown;
iris dark brown.
4 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
The Missel Thnish may be met with in ahiiost any locality where trees
are to be fonnd, in woods, coppices, plantations, parks, pleasure-grounds,
shrubberies, large gardens and orchards; in such places it makes its home and
brings up its family. The nest is frequently built either in the fork of a
branch or on the top of a strong horizontal bough, but perhaps the favourite
site is in the central hollow, formed by the branching off of the lichen-covered
boughs of some old apple tree. In the experience of the writer it is rare to
find this nest either in a very lofty or lowly position, but on one occasion he
saw it in a forked branch near the top of a tall elm tree in Hyde Park ; whilst,
on the other hand, the late Mr. E. T. Booth once observed it in a small
stunted bush within three feet of the ground. Iiastances of this bird building
in bushes are, however, extremely rare. Most nests will be found at an altitude
of from ten to fifteen feet.
The structure of the nest of the Missel Thrush is very solid, not un-
like that of the Blackbird. It is frequently placed upon a foundation of mud,
sheep's wool and twigs. The outer walls are usually formed of twigs, roots,
straws, and grasses, sometimes interwoven with wool and coarse moss; within
this is a lining of mud or clay, brought in pellets and mixed with grass or
roots. The inner lining is composed of finer grass, roots, and sometimes a
little moss. When lichens abound on the tree where the nest is situated a
few pieces are occasionally used to ornament the exterior, but one can hardly
suppose that a bird which places its nest almost invariably in a conspicuous
position, would make this addition with a view to concealment, although, by
rendering the outer walls of its domicile more like the branch on which it
rests, this result is, in a measure obtained.
The number of eggs laid by the Missel Thrush varies from three to five,
but four is the usual number. The colouring is rather suggestive of those
of the Chafl&nch, the ground colour being either pale greenish blue, yellowish
green, or brownish flesh tinted, boldly speckled, spotted and often blotched
with deep chocolate brown, and showing pearl grey or lavender underlying
spots; in size they correspond very nearly with those of the Blackbird,
but as regards their outline they more often give one the impression of being
widest near the centre, than the eggs of that species.
The pairing time of the Missel Thrush is earl)' in February, and at this
season, like most birds, they are exceedingly quarrelsome; the first nest is
occasionally commenced before the end of the same month, but only in the
South of England, where the bird is generally double-brooded; in my own
experience its nidification extends from March to May, April being the month when
The Missel Thrush. s
most nests are to be found.
If disturbed when sitting, the Missel Thrush is very noisy, but an}' attempt
to interfere with the young is the signal for a perfect uproar; then too is
the time to watch the perfect flight of this powerful bird as he sweeps round
in wide circles, or, as the intruder stoops to examine the nest, flashes through
the very branches close to his head, uttering wild guttural curses and shrieking
out horrid oaths: well has this bird earned its titles of "Screech Thrush"
and " Holm screech.''
The song of the Missel Thrush is wild, powerful and not without melody,
although somewhat monotonous; it is uttered from earl}' autumn until its
nesting duties commence; and, wet or fine, from earlj- dawn to dewy eve, its
rich notes may be heard; in the wildest and stormiest weather, it tries to
raise its voice above the uproar of the elements; on which account the well-
known name of "Stormcock" has been bestowed upon it. In the East Riding
of Yorkshire it is called " Charley Cock."
The food consists of berries, small fruits, seeds, snails, slugs, worms, larvae
and insects. It is especially fond of the berries of the mountain ash, and after
these it chooses those of the hawthorn or ivy; the berries of the mistletoe, to
which it owes its name of Mistletoe Thrush, or Missel Thrush, are rarely
eaten by it; during the autumn when grain is being sown, this bird eats it
greedily, a fact which should be borne in mind by those who keep cage birds, many
of whom labour under the delusion that, because a bird is called "insectivorous"
it should have no farinaceous food. As a matter of fact, many "insectivors," when
kept in the same aviary with seed-eating birds, swallow quantities of seed.
Excepting when feeding, the Missel Thrush spends most of its time either
in trees or shrubs, it is a somewhat shy bird, though bold in defence of its
young, it having been known to drive predaceous birds from the vicinit}^ of
its nest by the impetuous and noisy attacks which it has made upon them.
Moreover, it always seeks its food in the open fields, not skulking along
under hedges and shrubs after the manner of the Song Thrush. In captivity
it soon becomes tame and confiding, and if reared from the nest, it is quite
as friendly and playful towards its owner as a Canar\-.
In May, 1886, during a birdsnesting expedition in Kent, I came across a
nest of the Missel Thrush containing two young birds, in an old apple
orchard. With the assistance of the owner, upon whose shoulders I climbed, I
succeeded in pulling myself up into the lower branches, when it was easy to
climb to that which bore the nest: the question now was, how to get the
young birds into my basket without injury; however, as I leaned over the
6 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
nest, the youngsters quickly settled the difficulty by leaping out and fluttering
to the earth, screaming loudly the while. What with the old and young
birds together, the noise was something to be remembered.
I reared both these birds without the slightest trouble, iipon snails (dropped
into boiling water, taken from their shells, and cut into small pieces,) small
worms, and a paste made of oat-flour, known as " fig-dust," and fine pea-
meal; as they grew older, however, they refused both worms and large snails,
though they would readily swallow small living snails in their shells. They
also ate both hawthorn berries and wheat greedily, subsequently ejecting the
seeds of the former and the tough skin of the latter from the crop with
considerable force, so that I have frequently found the ejected pellets several
feet from their cage.
These two birds proved to be unmistakably a pair, the male having a
distinctly narrower head, slimmer build, more alert carriage and more master-
ful disposition; indeed, after a time, he so tormented his companion, pulling
out her feathers and scolding, whenever she approached him, that when a
friend took a fancy to her, I gladly gave her away.
As the male bird gained strength, I gave him, as staple food, a mixture
of oat-flour, pea-meal, and Spratt's food (crushed dog biscuit), moistened with
sufficient water to form a crumb-paste; on this diet he lived, with the addition
of an occasional insect or earthworm, and throve amazingly for nearly four
years, never having a day's illness, and always being ready for a frolic. If
I put my finger into his cage he would put one foot on it and thus holding
it down would flap his wings and hammer it with his bill; when I wished
to move him from one cage to another, he never attempted to get away until
I had grasped him firmly, then indeed he would kick a bit and utter his
harsh guttural call.
At length, in 1890, when my friend was three years and nine months
old, I was persuaded to send him to a show, but, unhappily, he who had
never tasted a particle of flesh was fed entirely on a mixture of finely minced
raw beef mixed with breadcrumbs; the result may be imagined — he had in-
cessant fits during the week of the show, was returued to me in a state of
apoplex}' and died in a fit about an hour after he reached home. Never give
raw flesh to anj- but predaceous birds.
Although hand-reared birds may make amusing pets, unless taught by
a wild bird, they never learn the wild song; my Missel Thrush only sang
two notes, one high, the other low, its song was far behind that of the
Ox-eye Tit for melody. There is not the least trouble in keeping and taming
I
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The Song Thrush. 7
wild Thrushes. They sulk at first, but a few lively worms quickly induce
them to feed.
Family— TURDID/Ii Subfaviily—TURDINAL.
The Song Thrush.
Tiirdiis iiiiisiciis, LiNN.
FOUND throughout the Palaearctic Region, but rare in the extreme East,
generally migrator}' in Western Europe, though resident in some countries;
generally distributed throughout the British Islands, though of rare occurrence in
the Shetlands. In England this bird is a partial migrant, great numbers
travelling southward late in the autumn but returning to their old haunts at
the first sign of spring weather; nevertheless, a considerable number remains
with us during the winter.
The adult bird above is deep olive-brown, the wing coverts tipped with
bright deep buff, under parts mostly white, the cheeks somewhat yellowish,
streaked with brown; the breast and sides ochraceous buff, boldly marked with
fan-shaped black spots ; spots on the white ventral surface of the body more
elongated, spindle-shaped and less numerous ; bill dark brown, paler at the
base of the lower mandible; legs pale brown, iris brown. The female resembles
the male, but has a slightly broader head. Nestlings differ from adults in
having the upper parts mottled with buff.
Wherever there is cover, you may expect to see the Song Thrush, he is
fond of shrubberies, hedgerows, and all places which afford partial conceal-
ment. Watch him in the garden, you will see him running down a path,
stopping after every few feet to look cautiously around; now he spies a large
bush or evergreen upon a bed to right or left and suddenly darting under
it commences to dig vigorously for worms ; presently he appears again upon
another path running as before and again disappearing in like manner, he
8 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
rarely remains very long in the open, yet is less skulking than his cousin,
the Blackbird.
Sometimes the Song Thrush proceeds by a series of hops, but certainly
not always. He frequentl}- runs as above described, but never walks sedately
after the manner of a Starling; even when seeking for worms in a meadow
or on a grass-plot he hops, and so he does when crossing a flower bed; but
on a path, I have rarely known this Thrush to move in anj- other way but
by running.
The nest of the Song Thrush is usually built low down in the fork of
a young tree, a shrub, especialh' an evergreen, the lower branches of old yew
trees are also frequentl}' selected as a building site. Occasionalh', a nest may
be seen among matted creepers, or even in the upper twigs of a rude wattle
fence forming the walls of a conntr}- cart-shed. In hawthorn hedges, on ivy-
covered walls, among stunted willows by streams, in crevices of rocks, or at
the roots of a tuft of heather it ma}' also be met with. The formation
of the nest is somewhat different from that of the other British Thrushes.
Bxternally, it is somewhat similar, being formed of slender twigs, roots, grasses,
dead leaves, and moss; but internally it has a lining of mud and rotten wood
or cow dung, so neatly rounded and smoothed off, that it much resembles
the interior of half a large cocoa-nut shell. This deep smooth cavity is pro-
duced in the most simple manner, namely' : by the hen bird squatting down and
turning round and round in it whilst the lining is soft.
The number of eggs laid bj^ the Song Thrush varies from three to six,
but five is the usual nimiber; where only three eggs are deposited, it is
probable that the first nest has been taken and a second one built immediately.
In such cases I have known the new home to be built and lined in two
days, the first egg being deposited whilst the mud lining was still moist; but
the Song Thrush rarely builds in less than three days. In the case of this
and all species at the beginning of the breeding season, a commencement
of building operations is frequently made before the mother is nearly ready
to lay. A nest is started and pulled to pieces, or deserted in an unfinished
condition; this playing at building has given careless observers, or such as
have not noted, year by year, the building of nests by the same species, an
exaggerated idea of the time required for the construction of bird-homes.*
The colouring of the eggs of Turdiis musicus is greenish blue, with distinct
deep brown (almost black) spots ; usually scattered sparsely over the larger end,
•Uixon mentions the fact of the Song Thrvish, after being robbed of its first uest. building in succession
no less than three perfectly constructed nests within five days.
The Song Thrush. 9
though sometimes over the whole surface, or only on the smaller end; spotless
examples occur also, but rarely, though I have taken entire clutches without marking ;
on the other hand some eggs are heavily blotched, and one, which I have
represented on Plate xxxvii. of my " Handbook of British Oology," has these
blotches so arranged as to form an irregular half-zone towards the larger end.
The form of the eggs of this species usually varies between a short pear-
shape and a true oval; in size they differ a good deal, probably the largest
eggs are deposited by the older birds.
When sitting, the hen Song Thrush is not easily scared from her nest;
possibly she may dread to uncover her very conspicuous eggs, and may hope
that her protective colouring and absohite stillness will serve to protect them;
so she sits close, her bill pointed upwards above one side of her castle, her
tail cocked up over the other, until one may almost put one's hand upon
her; then suddenly she is gone like a shadow,' usually without noise,* and the
bright spotted eggs are exposed to view.
Without doubt the comparative difficulty of flushing the Song Thrush
does tend to its preservation : even a Naturalist, unless he is a bird-nester,
often fails to notice the nest; though, when one has acquired eyes to recognize
birds' homes at a glance, it seems marvellous that so conspicuous an object,
and one so common in well-wooded country, can fail to be observed.
The Song Thrush is one of the earliest birds to sing and also go to
nest ; in unitsually mild seasons it will build as early as February, but March
to Aiigust may be considered its breeding season. May and June being the
months when nests of this bird are most abundant.
The song of the Throstle or Mavis (as North countrymen call it) is very
loud ; so much so, that in a room or conservatory its notes are almost
unbearable ; in the open, however, they are cheerful and inspiring, though
somewhat monotonous, each phrase being repeated at least four times in
succession, and occasionally (more especially when the musician has hit
upon something novel), as many as seven or eight times. To my
mind the song is rather joyous and vigorous, than melodious : when heard at
early dawn as one wakens, it pleases the first time, annoys the second,
irritates the third, and finally becomes an intolerable nuisance: the Blackbird's
melody, on the contrary, is always welcome. As one lies in bed trying to
sleep, the whistle of the Song Thrush resolves itself into short sentences. I
• Seebohm slates that, when put off her nest " her harsh cries and active motions, with tliose of her
mate, awaken the silent woods, and speak most plainly of the anxiety of the birds for their treasure." I have not
found this to be the case, excepting where the young were almost ready to fly, and only when they have
uttered a cry of alarm.
Vol. I. C
lo British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
remember one particular bird which bothered me for weeks ; in all weathers
he would sit on a tree, within sight of my bedroom window, shouting as
follows: — "Deal d ivet, deal d tvct, deal d wet, deal d tvct ; I do, (pronounced
dough as if he were trying to sa}^ knmv with a cold), / do, I do, I do;
Whdd do it? Who d do it? Who d do it? Who d do it? Pretty dick, pretty dick,
pretty dick, pretty dick;''^ and so on ad nauseam.
The food of the Song Thrush, when at liberty, consists of insects and
their larvas or pupae, worms, snails, berries, and seeds; in the spring and
summer living food is preferred, but towards autumn and throughout the
winter, berries and grain when procurable, are devoured, husks and hard
kernels being ejected some five or ten minutes after the food has been
swallowed; thus it is that woody seeds like that of the hawthorn are carried
far from the parent tree, to spring up and make the unthinking wonder
whence they came.
In captivity the Song Thrush sings quite as well as in its native haunts,
indeed, a good bird often continues his song from November to the end of
July; but if it is to reproduce the wild notes, it must be a wild-caught bird;
for a nestling, brought up by hand, either sings a few short monotonous sing-
song phrases; or, if it be a vigorous bird, brought up amongst other feathered
companions, it shouts out the most deafening, though sometimes comical jumble
of notes imaginable. My experience of hand-reared birds as compared with
those caught wild is also unfavourable to the former in other respects, I have
found them vicious and domineering in an aviar3% dirty and wasteful in a
cage; they are always more wild than a cage-moulted trapped bird. The
latter, after its first moult, becomes gentle, confiding, and neither wasteful
nor dirty ; it has even been trusted in an aviary with small Finches, and I
have never seen it molest them. As to the cruelty of caging up wild birds,
it is more fanciful than real, a bird does not sing when it is unhappy,
much may, however, be said as regards the cruelty of rearing birds from the
nest ; the parents' anger and annoyance is the least part of it, the bungling
method of feeding the 3'oung, often upon the most unsuitable food, is its
worst feature.
The best staple food for this, and all other insectivorous birds, is composed
of stale household bread crumbled, mixed with half the quantity of preserved
yolk of egg, preserved ants' cocoons, and Abrahams' food (or one of the
many advertised &g^ foods), the mixture being moistened by the addition of
potatoes, boiled the day before, and passed through a masher when required
for use; on this mixture with the addition of a few insects, or worms, and
=♦>
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The Song Thrush. h
a little fruit, I have kept Thrushes, aud maity other birds, in perfect health
for years; grocers' currants, which are often recommended, should be avoided,
they have a tendency to irritate the intestines and often produce diarrhoea;
thin slices of apple, over-ripe pears, sweet-water grapes, sweet oranges, or
ripe strawberries and currants, when in season, are as good as anything. In
an aviary Thrushes and man}- other so-called "soft-billed" birds will swallow
seed whole, and it seenis to agree wonderfully well with them, rendering
their flesh firm and their plumage gloss}' ; but to feed a Thrush on bread
and hempseed alone is the height of folly, and usually results in the earl}^
death of the captive.
This, like most of the British Thrushes, has been bred in aviaries, and,
from experiments made during the last few years, it appears that they will
even go to nest in comparatively small cages.
Family— TURDIDAi. SubfaviUy~TURDIN/E.
The Redwing.
Turdus iliaciis, LlNN.
THIS, the smallest British Thrush, breeds from the Arctic circle through-
out the Palsearctic region, and winters in Westeni and Southern Europe
and Northern Africa; it visits the Volga islands when on migration. West-
ward it has straggled to the Canaries and Madeira. In Asia it has wintered
in Persia, Turkestan and N.W. India, and in Siberia as far as Lake Baikal.
Mr. Seebohm found it in the valley of the Petchora as far North as latitude
68°, he observes: — "The Redwing frequents the birch region and the upper
zone of the pine region, occurring in limited numbers South of the Arctic
circle in many places where these trees are found, in South Norwa}' and
Sweden, and on the Russian shores of the Baltic. It is the most northerl}^
la British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
in its range of any of the Thrushes, and occasionally wanders as far as
Greenland."
To the British Islands the Redwing is a regular winter visitant, arriving
on our Eastern coasts either towards the end of October or early in November;
it is supposed to linger longest in the Hebrides, the last examples probably
leaving us during the month of April. The assertions which have, from time
to time, been made, that this species has remained to breed in Great Britain,
are not satisfactory, neither the birds or eggs having been secured as evidence
of the fact.
The Redwing, when in breeding plumage, is, next to the Blackbird, the
most strikingly coloured of our Thrushes; its upper surface is olive brown;
a clear creamy white eye-brow stripe extends backwards to the nape; wing-
coverts with pale tips; the under surface is buff, gradually fading off" into almost
pure white on the belly; the breast and throat broadly streaked with dark
brown; the ilanks and under wing-coverts chestnut red, spotted with deep
brown. The sexes are very similar, the young, however, differ in having
their upper and under surfaces spotted. In general appearance the Redwing
is like a small Song Thrush, but its whitish eye-stripe and red flanks give
it a very distinctive character; when seen from the front it has a curious
resemblance to a frog.
Soon after their arrival in this country Redwings may sometimes be
seen, even in our suburban gardens, feeding at twilight upon the berries of
the hawthorn. I remember on one occasion, chancing to look out shortly
before dusk at my garden, I was puzzled to see the entire length of a thick
hawthorn hedge which closed in the end of my plot of ground covered with
moving shadows. I ran for a field glass and discovered that no less than
thirty Redwings were fluttering up and down like huge moths in front of
this hedge, eagerly snatching off" and swallowing the berries. The following
day I discovered that an unusually fine crop of haws had almost entirely
disappeared.*
Seebohm says that " The favourite haunt of the Redwing is a sheltered
valley down which a little brooklet runs, with trees scattered here and there,
and tall hedgerows of thorn and hazel. They are very partial to small parks
thickly timbered and studded with clumps of white thorn trees, with here
and there a cluster of hollies or a dense shrubbery, whither they repair at
nightfall to roost."
• The birds were clearly distinguishable with the glass as Redwings, not Fieldfares, the latter arrived
some weeks later and found hardly a berry left.
The Redwing. 13
In wooded districts the Redwing usually builds in bushes or low-growing
trees, but in more desolate regions a low fence, a hollow between stones,
or a sloping bank serve as a nesting-site. The nest itself is a neat structure
formed of plaited twigs, grass and reindeer-moss, plastered inside with mud or
clay, and lined with fine grasses and root- fibre. The number of eggs varies
from four to six, some writers giving the former, and some the latter, as
the usual number. In colour they are pale green, either finely and closel}^
streaked with reddish brown, like small specimens of some Blackbird's eggs,
or zoned with brown blotches; but, as with other Thrushes, eggs are some-
times found of a uniform green colour.
When the nest is approached, but especially when it contains young birds,
the Redwing becomes much excited, flying angrily round the intruder and
snapping its bill after the manner of its kind. It frequently produces two
broods in a season.
The food of the Redwing consists preferably of insects, worms and snails,
but when frost and snow deprive it of these it feeds on various berries, more
particularly those of the service tree and hawthorn ; it is distinctly more insectivorous
in its tastes than other Thrushes, nevertheless in confinement it thrives well
upon the same soft food.
One winter a bird-catcher brought me a bag, containing six Redwings
and a Fieldfare which he had just caught. I would not, however, be persuaded
to take the whole of them, but, selecting two of the Redwings (which fortunately
proved to be a pair) and the Fieldfare, I sent the man away. The Red-
wings I turned loose in an unheated aviary with other British birds. At
first the new-comers were somewhat wild, but they soon settled down in
their new home. They never showed the slightest uneasiness at the season of
migration, as I had been informed they would do, but early in the year assumed
such rich colouring, that Naturalists who saw them in my aviary, expressed
astonishment at the beauty of their plumage. Very early the male began to
record his song, but usually in the morning only; in the evening its call-
note — a soft plaintive whistle, which reminded me of that of the American
Blue-bird, was all that I heard at that time; later, however, he began to sing
out loud.
As an aviary bird, I found the Redwing ornamental, and most inoffensive,
but by no means lively; it would sit in one place on the earth without
moving for half an hour at a time, still as a breathing statue — a frog in
behaviour and appearance ; but, throw a spider or a smooth-skinned caterpillar
into the aviary, and, like that Batrachian, it was instantly alert. In spite of
14 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs,
its beauty I should imagine that the Redwing, if kept in a cage, would be
intolerable; after two years I wearied of my pair, and sold them for a small
sum to a friend, who immediately entered them for a show and carried off
a first prize with them. Poor Redwings! I fear that their life after they
left niv home was not an enviable one.
Although the breeding of the Redwing in Great Britain needs confir-
mation, there seems to be no reason why it should not be possible, inasmuch
as it has been proved that stragglers have remained with us throughout the
summer. It has been known to nest in the Faroes.
Family—TURDIDyE. Subfamily— TURD IN A<.
The Fieldfare.
Tiirdus pilaris, Lixx.
RESPECTING the Geographical distribution of this species, one cannot do
better than quote Seebohm, he says: — "A regular winter visitant to the
British Islands, the Fieldfare is commonly distributed over the cultivated
districts, and as far on the uplands as the mountain farms extend. The
arrival of Fieldfares in Scotland is usually noticed first in the eastern counties,
as it is quite natural to expect it would be, for their path in autumn is
south and south-westwards. A few birds are said to be found on the Orkneys
throughout the year, but they do not breed there. On the Hebrides the Fieldfare
does not arrive till mid-winter, and is only found on the farms and pastures
^in the little oases of cultivated land so sparingly scattered amongst the wide-
stretching moorland wastes. In Ireland these birds also arrive late, and are
foiind commonly distributed over those districts suitable to their habits and
needs — the cultivated tracts. Fieldfares have been said to have bred in the
British Islands; but until definite proofs are forthcoming it is not safe to admit
the truth of the statement, the .birds being ver\' liable to be confounded with
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The Fieldfare. 15
Missel-Thrushes bj- careless observers. The Fieldfare has a somewhat more
southerly breeding-range than the Redwing. It breeds in the Arctic circle,
extending up to, and occasionally beyond, the limit of forest growth, and in
north-temperate Europe as far South and West as the basin of the Baltic, and
throughout Siberia as far East as the watershed of the Yenesay and the Lena.
Its occurrence in Iceland is doubtful,* but it has been occasionally met with
on the Faroes. It winters in Southern Europe, occurring very rarel}- in the
Spanish peninsiila, but crossing the Mediterranean to Morocco, Algeria, Egypt,
and Nubia. In Asia it winters in Turkestan and Cashmere; and one specimen
at least has been obtained at Simla, in the North- West Himalayas."
The Fieldfare in breeding plumage is slaty-gre}' on the upper parts with
the exception of the mantle which is chestnut brown, and the wings and tail,
which are dark brown ; the head is streaked with black ; the throat and breast are rich
golden brown, spotted and streaked with blackish brown; the flanks are similar, but
more orange internally ; the centre of the belly is pure white and unspotted ; the bill
yellowish; feet black; iris deep brown. The female greatly resembles the male,
but the young on leaving the nest are spotted with buff" on the back, though after
the first moult they much resemble their parents.
The Fieldfare's season of migration varies somewhat in accordance with the
milder or colder temperature of its breeding-haunts; in like manner its time of
departure from our shores depends greatly upon the appearance of spring weather;
there is no defined appointed time for its migration. Cold and scarcity of food in
its native home represent the voice of Nature calling upon it to seek comfort in
somewhat milder regions; then again, the return of warmth and living food remind
it that the season of love is at hand, and the inherited habit of centuries teaches
this bird to seek for the fulfilment of its hopes in the land of its birth; doubtless
this is largely the cause of the so-called migratory instinct in all birds, the weaker
and more sensitive to cold and hunger being the first to migrate ; therefore it is
that the Redwing precedes the Fieldfare.
It is easy to distinguish a Fieldfare from a Missel Thrush when it is on the
ground, for, although it frequently associates with the latter bird, its grey rump,
thrown into strong relief by the dark wings and tail, looks almost white. This
species, however, is far less frequently seen upon the earth than our native
Thrushes. Its favourite resort is a berry-laden hawthorn, upon which it will eat its
fill unless disturbed, when with a clatter of chacks and chicks it shoots off" in a
straight line towards another of Nature's restaurants.
Among the birches and pines of Norway the Fieldfares breed in colonies, in
* There seems, however, to be very Httle question that this species is an occasional Icelandic visitant. — A.C'j.B.
i6 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
the former the nests are said to be situated in a cleft between the trunk and a
large branch, but further north these birds become less gregarious, and their nests
are then situated in low bushes, heaps of firewood, on fences and similar places,
after the fashion of our Blackbird ; whilst on the bare tundras of Siberia they
select a hollow under the grassy edge of a cliif or bank for a breeding-site, like
the Ring-Ouzel.
The nest is very like that of the Blackbird, externally it is constructed
of coarse dry grass, sometimes interwoven with birch twigs and a little moss,
plastered inside with mud, and thickly lined with fine grass. The number of
eggs varies from three to seven, but usually from four to six ; according to
Seebohm, they vary more than those of any of our British Thrushes; but I
think most of those which I have seen could be matched among the almost
endless variations of our Blackbird's eggs; their groiind-colour is either paler
or deeper green, blotched, mottled, and speckled with reddish brown, sometimes
over the entire surface, but more frequently concentrated at the larger end.
The markings of some examples (as with our Blackbird) are indistinct, evenlj'^
distributed, in others they are few and rich brown upon a deep blue ground
(a variety which I have not seen in eggs of the Blackbird; though they are
sometimes as blue as those of the Song Thrush).
The food of this species consists in summer of worms, insects, as well as their
larvae and pupae and small wild fruits; in winter, principally of berries, especially
those of the hawthorn, also insects, snails and worms when procurable, and seeds
of grain and grasses.
The Fieldfare is a poor songster. He rarely sings excepting in the breeding
season, and his performance consists of a wild warble, at times interrupted by
chattering somewhat similar to that of the Starling. The example which I had
for two years never sang at all, but occasionally uttered a harsh guttural sound like
that of the Missel Thrush.
As a cage bird the Fieldfare is most uninteresting, he soon becomes tame, and,
if allowed to bathe, keeps his plumage in beautiful condition; but, excepting for
show purposes, is only an expense: like all Thrushes, he is a large eater, and
therefore needs frequent attention. I parted with mine when I sold my Redwings,
and have never wished to keep another.
I fed him on the same food as my other insectivorous species, adding a few
worms, snails, caterpillars, and berries when obtainable; he was always in perfect
health, even when moulting, and never showed restlessness at the seasons of
migration ; in fact, he was one of the steadiest and most apathetic birds I ever
possessed.
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White's Thrush t?
His name has been corrupted to " Felfer," " Felt," " Pigeon Felt," or
"Blue Felt" by country folk.
Family— TURD ID. E. Subfamily— TURDINAL.
White's Thrush.
Turdus varins, Pallas.
THIS bird, also known as " White's Ground-Thrush " and placed in the genus
Geociclila, is only an accidental straggler to our shores ; about a dozen
examples having been obtained in the southern and midland counties of England
and two in Ireland. Therefore, although, from the writer's standpoint, it has no
more claim to be called British, than au}^ foreigner stranded on the British coast
has to be called an Englishman, its claim to the title is stronger than in the
case of the " Black- Throated," the " Rock Thrush," and many other species
usually included in the British list on the strength of single examples which have
come to hand.
White's Ground-Thrush is a native of South-central and South-eastern Siberia
and of North China: at the approach of winter it migrates to South Japan, South
China, the Philippines and even to Sumatra. The first example obtained in Great
Britain was shot in Hampshire in January, 1828 ; and, being supposed to be new to
science, was named Turdus whitci by Eyton, in honour of White, of Selbourne :
thus the trivial name of White's Thrush was first applied to it.
The upper surface of this species is ochraceous brown, with black tips to the
feathers; the wing feathers are darker and tipped with buff; the tail \\2& fourteen
feathers, the four central ones ochraceous brown, the others dark brown, all tipped
with white ; the under surface is white, tinged with buff on the breast, and boldly
spotted with black crescent- shaped markings : the bill is brown, the lower mandible
paler; the feet yellowish brown, the iris dark brown. The sexes are supposed to
i8 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
be alike. In size, this species rather excels the Missel-Thrush.
The nidification of White's Thrush was observed in 1872, at Ningpo, by the
late Consul Swinhoe : the nest was roughly built, and situated on a fork of a
horizontal pine-branch ; its outside consisted of dead rushes, grasses, a few twigs,
dead leaves and a little moss ; it was thickly plastered with mud, amongst which
were fragments of some green weed ; the inside, like that of the Blackbird, was
thickly lined with mud, covered with an inner lining of coarse rootlets and sedgy
grass.
Three eggs only were in the nest ; but the complete clutch would probably
number four or five ; Mr. Seebohni, who secured the nest and two of the eggs
for his collection, thus describes them : — " They resemble those of the Missel-
Thrush ; but the ground-colour is slightly paler, and the spots much finer, more
numerous, and more evenly distributed."
The flight of White's Thrush, unlike that of our common species, is said to
be " very undulating, like that of the Green Woodpecker, and low, often settling
on the ground, and only making choice of a tree when it happened to pass under
one, into which it rose almost vertically." It is more strictly insectivorous than
the true species of Tiirdus, living principally upon insects, their larvae and pupae,
spiders, worms, and such mollnsca as are found in moist situations. In China it
is known to feed also on berries, especially those of the banyan ; nevertheless
most of its food is obtained on the ground amongst decayed vegetation, in ditches,
under bu.shes, or among the roots of trees.
It is not known whether this species has any song ; its call-note is said to be
" a soft plaintive see, audible at a long distance," and when on migration it some-
times " litters a melodious whistling cry."
As a cage-bird, White's Thrush would probably prove an utter failure ;
whether it sings or not, it can hardly be an industrious performer, moreover it
would probably pass much of its time on the floor of its cage or aviary.
The Blackbird. 19
Family— rURDID^. Subfamily— TURD IN^.
The Blackbird.
Turdns meriila, LiN'N'.
THIS handsome Thrush is generally distributed over nearly ever}- country of
Europe and North Africa. In Norway at about 67° N. lat. it appears to
reach its highest breeding range ; it also occurs in Asia Minor, Palestine, Persia,
Turkestan, Afghanistan and Cashmere, being somewhat larger in the three last
mentioned countries, and, on that account distinguished by Mr. Seebohm as a
race to which he has given the name of Menila maxima. In Great Britain it is
generally distributed and partialh^ resident, but in the Shetland Islands it occurs
only in the winter ; and, in the Hebrides its appearance is irregular, although on
some of them it is recognized as a rare resident. In the southern counties in
winter its numbers are largely increased by immigrants from the north.
The aditlt male is entirely glossy black in plumage ; the bill in young birds
golden ochreous, gradually becoming deep orange with age, feet brownish black,
iris hazel, edges of eyelids golden yellow. The adult female, when young, is deep
brown ; somewhat rufous on the throat and breast, which are streaked with smoky
black ; the bill brown : as the bird grows older, the gape becomes more or less
edged with ochre yellow, the black throat- streaks become more pronounced
and the chin sometimes becomes whitish. In the nestling birds most of the
feathers have pale shaft-streaks, and those of the upper parts have dark tips ;
whilst those of the under parts have dark bars ; in other respects they resemble
young hen birds : young males are said to be slightl}' more dusky than females ;
but if such a diflference exists, I never could satisfy myself of the fact in the case
of the young birds which, from time to time, I have hand-reared : the more
active and pugnacious disposition and narrower crown would be far better guides
in the selection of cock nestlings.
Talking of pugnacity, it is pre-eminentl}' a characteristic of the Blackbird,
and especially at the pairing season : the Song- Thrush is combative enough, but
the Blackbird will fight to the bitter end. I remember, on one occasion when in
my garden, hearing a violent rustling and flapping of wings and supposing that
some unfortimate Thrush or Blackbird had been seized b}' a cat, I slipped up as
20 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
■quickly and quietly as possible to the scene of the disturbance ; there I saw two
cock Blackbirds firmly clutching one another and tearing out feathers by the
mouthful, violently flapping the while and so intent upon murder that, until I
was almost within reach of them, they were not aware of my approach ; then just
as I was meditating a double capture, they saw me, and simultaneously letting go
of one another, flew off in opposite directions with loud chattering cries.
Fighting is not the only sin of which the Blackbird is guilty ; some individuals
of the species have ovivoroiis tendencies : at a house where I was once staying, a
pair of Blackbirds had built a nest on a trained plum-tree ; as usual, I had inter-
ested myself in noting the time occupied in building and in the deposition of the
eggs : on the third day the nest was completed and the hen settled down in it
for the night. I rose early in those days, frequently taking a country ramble
before breakfast ; that morning, before starting, I looked in the nest, and there
was the first egg ; but, when I returned an hour later, the shell alone lay on the
earth below the nest. Determined to discover the thief, if possible, I took a pair
of opera-glasses upstairs that night, and, getting out of bed about 6 a.m., I
waited and watched : presently I heard the cock Blackbird singing, and then he
flew on to the end wall of the garden — " Chi)ik, cliinka chuck, chuck, chuck, chack ;
swee ; szvce.'' Out flew the hen and on to the nest went the old wretch, deliber-
ately pecked and picked up the egg, and devoured the contents, dropping the
shell as before. This trick was repeated again the following day, and then the
hen deserted her nest.
In all well-wooded districts the Blackbird is extremely abundant, and where
wood and water are combined it is so common that, on one occasion, I came across
nearly forty nests in the course of a single morning's ramble. In suburban
gardens it is also common, but not nearly so much so as the Song- Thrush : this
can be easily proved, not merely by the numbers seen, for with so skulking a bird
many might be overlooked ; but, by the relative number of nests built in such
places in spring, and the largely disproportionate number of Thrushes trapped in
winter.
The nest of the Blackbird is built in the most diverse situations, such as
hedges, shrubs, trees, faggot- stacks, holes in walls or rocks, niches in sides of
gravel- or chalk-pits, or even in very low banks ; its favourite sites are perhaps
in wattle fences overgrown with bramble or ivy, in evergreen shrubs, or on
branches of fruit-trees trained against walls. It is a bulky cup-shaped structure,
usually placed upon a foundation of twigs, dead leaves, rags, paper, sometimes a
draggled quill feather or two, and mud ; the form of the outside walls varies
according to the position of the nest ; they are constructed of stalks of grass and
The Blackbird. 21
twigs intertwined and compacted with moss ; the inside of the cup plastered with
mud in pellets, almost or entirely concealed by dead leaves, rootlets and fine grass:
occasionall}- the mud plastering is entirely absent, but the only two nests having
this peculiarity which I have seen, I met with on the same morning ; one of these
I retained for my collection.
The eggs are marvellously variable, both in size, shape and colouring ; they
number from four to six, but usually five. The following are some of the more
distinct varieties which I have taken: — i. Greenish blue, precisely like some eggs
of the Song- Thrush in tint ; but, when examined through a lens, showing ver}^
minute and indistinct reddish longitudinal dashes over the whole surface ; 2.
Greyish olive, showing (under a lens) extremely fine dust-like brownish speckling,
a few black dots near the small end, this form somewhat reminds one of some
eggs of the Jay. 3. Large and broad, pale chalk}- blue, with' indistinct rusty spots
and dots scattered sparsely over the entire surface, the larger half sprinkled with
little rugosities. 4. Much elongated, pale blue, mottled all over with pale rusty
reddish. 5. Short and broad, greenish blue, mottled and blotched all over with
reddish-brown. 6. Very broad; pale chalky blue, speckled sparsely all over, and
heavily blotched at both ends, with rust- reddish and greyish lavender. 7. Similar,
from same nest, but only heavily blotched at the larger end. 8. Pale sandy
brownish with very indistinct rust- reddish marbling all over : this is a small egg,
evidently laid by a young bird. 9. Pale greenish blue sparsely but boldly spotted
from the shoulder (or larger terminal third) and heavily spotted and clouded at
the larger end with rusty brown leopard-like markings. 10. Pale greenish, so
covered with indistinct reddish smears and speckles that the green is almost lost.
II. Deep blue-green, boldly spotted with rusty brown, which collects into a large
patch at the small end. ,12. Flesh-whitish, densely speckled and marbled with
rust red. 13. I also have a chalky white egg, with faint indications (visible
through a lens) of olivaceous mottling. This egg was given to me by a lady
friend and was obtained by her from an ordinary nest, at Wateringbury, near
Maidstone. Of the above (which I have selected for description from a picked
series of forty-four in my egg-collection) Nos. i, 2, 3, 8, 12, and 13 are all rare
varieties, not very characteristic of the species : possibly No. 1 , which is not
unlike a very deep-coloured Starling's egg, may, as Howard Saunders suggests,
be the result of a union between the Song- Thrush and Blackbird, the fact that
these two species do sometimes interbreed in a wild state being thoroughly well
established.
In the winter of 1894-5 a bird was caught in one of my traps which 1 firmly
believe was a hybrid Thrush- Blackbird : when first captured it was very dirty,
British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
and I then supposed it to be an old hen Blackbird; but, after a good wash, its
true colouring came out clearly ; the whole upper parts being deep smoky brown,
the chin and throat white streaked with dull black ; the breast, in certain lights,
showing traces of the true Song- Thrush spotting ; the bill deep orange with the
basal half of the culmen black ; feet yellowish horn-brown.
This bird, of which Mr. Frohawk made
a careful sketch, became very tame in a few
weeks and I should certainly have kept it
up to the present time, had not a friend,
who had given much attention to British
cage-birds, visited me and asked me wh}- I
was keeping a hen Blackbird. I pointed out
the orange bill, the extent of white on the
throat, the heavy black streaking and ill-
defined breast spots, and he admitted that
he had never seen a similar hen Blackbird.
Unfortunatel}' I wanted the cage, in which
I had kept this supposed hybrid, for my
Mocking-bird (which I found too tyrannical for an aviary) therefore I gave
the Thrush its liberty: but, on the following day, one of ni}- neighbours was
walking round my garden, when a bird in the adjoining plot began to sing a
most marvellous song, which my neighbour characterized as neither like that of
Blackbird or Song Thrush, but a combination of both. I have no doubt, as I
told him, that my recently liberated bird was the singer.
The song of the Blackbird is quite unlike that of any other British Thrush,
clear, mellow and melodious, it is one of the finest productions of our feathered
choir: it however varies wonderfully in merit in different individuals, and no two
Blackbirds sing precisely alike. The finest singers are rarely heard, their per-
formance is continuous, flowing, ever changing, somewhat reminding one of the
Blackcap's song; most Blackbirds, however, sing set phrases, more or less
plaintive but always vigorous in character.
Frequently, in the middle of its song, a Blackbird stops abruptly and
ridicules its own performances, singing over the last phrase in a minor ke}' and
following it up with derisive caricatures ending in meaningless squeaks: some-
times it pauses abruptl}' and (perhaps for five or ten minutes) repeats, at
intervals its dismal ear-splitting call note — a shrill reedy tseet; or it will break off
into its noisy go-to-roost rattle — " Chink, cJiink, chink, chink, chink; cJiacka, chack-
a-rack, chack, chack, chack, chack ; chuck, chuck, chuck." Passing through shrubberies
The Blackbird. 23
at twilight, this good-night greeting may be heard on all sides; sometimes a
little varied, but usually commencing with " chink " and terminating with
^' chuck'''' : at dawn it frequently leaves out the harsh " chnck"
The flight of the Blackbird is usually very direct, it may be seen passing
over garden after garden with steady regular beat of wing, until perchance it
nears some favourite tree, when its course is almost imperceptibly changed to an
upward slant which lands it on its chosen branch ; when suddenl}- flushed from
the nest, the flight is usually direct at first, bxit with a rapid swerving to right
or left and a return to roost in some neighbouring cover. When it alights,
the Blackbird throws its tail up almost at right angles to the body, stretches the
neck and holds its legs wide apart ; this gives it a wonderfuU}' alert and
attentive aspect. In this respect it somewhat resembles Magpies, or Ja3^s of the
genus Cyanocorax, which always throw up the tail when they alight, but assume
the attitude of attention as this appendage drops back to its ordinary level.
Although usually a very skulking bird, seeking its food mostly under hedge-
rows, in ditches, or among shrubs and bushes ; when it has young to feed the
Blackbird may often be seen among Starlings and Thrushes upon our lawns, busily
engaged in the pursuit of worms. In fields of turnip or cabbage it may also be
seen seeking for worms and caterpillars ; for the common garden snail and slugs
the Blackbird seems to care less than does the Song-Thrush, but the prettily
banded hedge-snails it delights in : like all insectivorous birds, its favourite morsels
are spiders, insects and their grubs. Mr. Frohawk tells me that, in the late
autumn, he has watched a Blackbird slowly hopping down a garden path and
carefully turning over every fallen leaf in its search for insect food. Unfortunately
for the Blackbird's peace of mind, it is not exclusively insectivorous ; it is also
to some extent graminivorous and largely frugivorous, being especially fond of
strawberries, in pursuit of which it often loses its life at the hands of the short-
sighted fruit-grower; it also devours a good many currants, gooseberries, cherries,
and peas in their season, whilst the raspberry, blackberry and sloe are not
despised. Late in autumn when the more pleasant fruits are becoming scarce, the
Blackbird turns its attention to hips and haws, as well as the berries of the ivy
and mistletoe.
Upon the earth the Blackbird proceeds by a series of hops, then a pause at
attention and on again : in its actions it strongly reminds one of the Robin ; but
it does not appear, like our little Christmas favourite, to suffer from chronic
epileps}^ fidgets, St. Vitus' dance, or whatever it is which makes the latter give
that absurd little duck everj' half minute, when sitting on a branch : no, the
Blackbird is far too sedate for such frivolity.
24 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs,
The Blackbird is especially bold in defence of its young ; even when the
nest contains eggs alone, I have known this bird to sit so close, that it has been
caught upon the nest and ruthlessly killed by its heartless captor. To some
creatures having the outward form of man, a few cherries, hastily swallowed and
forgotten, are of more importance than months of woodland music : unhappily
many such mere animals are trusted with firearms, and do their utmost to destroy
the farmer's and fruit-grower's most useful and industrious assistants ; either not
knowing, or not caring to know, that the birds are only taking wages in kind
for the fruit which they have worked hard to save from the ravages of insect
enemies.
As a cage-bird, the Blackbird is without a rival among our Thrushes ; clean,
lively, pleasing both in form and in his simple colouring, readil}' tamed, easily
kept in health for years, it is no wonder that he is a general favourite : but, if he
is to turn out a good songster, he must be caught, not reared from the nest. A
hand-reared bird never sings the wild song, and hardly ever pleases with his per-
formance ; indeed I have only known one bird (reported to be hand-reared, and
fed upon sopped bread only) which really had an attractive song. Of the numbers
which I reared when I first began to study aviculture, the best singer never got
beyond six notes of a dismal psalm-tune. On the other hand, every trapped cock
Blackbird, if properly fed, is sure to sing the true wild song sooner or later ;
xisually in the first spring after his capture.
Like many other birds when first caught, the Blackbird often refuses to feed
at all the first day ; and, if in good condition when caged, he ma}- continue to
sulk for a day or two longer ; but even a sulky Blackbird cannot resist the
attractions of a lively mealworm, spider, or even earthworm, and when he once
begins to eat, he will continue ; so that there is never much difiiculty in inducing
him to empty his pan of soft food. The latter, as already hinted previously, should
be largely farinaceous, but with an admixture of yolk of egg and ants' cocoons ;
slices of apple or pear, and berries, as well as insects and worms, should also be
given from time to time ; but meat nnvr, if you value the health of your bird :
if given, it will assuredly produce diarrhoea, resulting sooner or later in cramp,
or fits. I tried it with fatal results, for several years.
_1
LlI
N
o
6
z
The Ring-0u2el *5
Faviily— TURDIDyE. Subfamily— TURDINAi.
The Ring-Ouzel.
Turdus torquatus, LiNN.
UPON the Continent of Europe this bird is a summer visitant to the more
desolate portions of the pine districts ; it nevertheless breeds freely in
the mountainous regions of the South. Eastward its range appears to be limited
by the Ural Mountains. It winters in the lowlands and alpine districts of South
Europe, in North Africa, Asia Minor, and Persia.
In Great Britain it is rarely resident ; indeed during the winter it is usually the
only British Thrush which is absent. Though in mild seasons it has been known
to remain with us up to Christmas, as a rule the Ring- Ouzel leaves us in
September or October, returning in April to breed. Although far more abundant
as a breeding species in the wild moors and mountainous districts of the
North, it is known to have bred in rocky parts of Cornwall, Devon, Somerset,
Hampshire, Kent, Suffolk, Norfolk, Warwick, Leicester, Gloucestershire, Mon-
mouthshire, Wales, Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Derbyshire : in the
wilder portions of Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and Wales it breeds freely.
The general colour of the male Ring- Ouzel is a dark sooty brown inclining
to black, with the exception of a broad white crescentic gorget ; the wing feathers
edged externally with grey ; under wing-coverts and axillaries mottled with grey
and white : bill yellowish, black at the tip ; feet brownish black ; iris dark brown.
The female paler and browner than the male and with somewhat brownish gorget.
Birds of the year have broad pale margins to the feathers of the under surface,
the gorget in the male is brownish and in the female barely discernable.
Nestlings have the feathers of the back and breast barred with black and pale
brown, and the wing-coverts tipped with ochraceous buff.
The nest of this species is not at all unlike that of the Blackbird, but it is
somewhat looser in construction : externally it is formed of dry bents and grass,
frequently intertwined with twigs of heather or larch and compacted with dead
leaves, moss and mud ; inside it is lined with clay or mud, concealed by a thick
inner lining of fine grass. It is almost always built on the ground, most
frequently amongst ling on the sharp edge of an embankment; also under furze,
Vol. I. F
a6 British Birds with their Nests and Eggs.
or among heather upon steep declivities, very rarely in a low bush or tree.
The eggs number from four to five, usually four, and are extremely similar
to those of the Blackbird and Fieldfare ; indeed, unless the collector takes them
himself, I do not for a moment believe that he could be assured of their origin.
I obtained eggs from two nests in Kent, in both cases 'flushing the bird from
them ; she flew off with harsh cries — ''chack-chack-chack"* after the manner of a
Blackbird, but did not go far away ; probably had the nest contained young she
would have flown round my head with loud cries after the manner of the Missel
Thrush ; but I have rarely found birds so devoted to their eggs as to their young,
unless they have actually commenced incubation. I found my second nest
amongst a clump of heather growing under a furze bush, on the edge of a wild
plantation bounding part of a large park at Tunstall, near Sittingbourne, on May
17th, 1879: the nest unfortunately only contained one e.^g. My first nest was
found on the margin of an unreclaimed bit of heathery moorland in the Stock-
bury Valley under a straggling tuft of ling overhanging the edge of a steep
embankment at the side of a little frequented road, on May 24th, 1875 : ^^^^^
nest contained two eggs. In both cases I omitted to take the nest, and
consequently this is a desideratum to my collection ; probably the birds continued
to utilize them.
The habits of the Ring-Ouzel are very similar to those of the Blackbird ;
its flight is very similar and its trick of throwing up the tail as it alights, its
method of searching for food, characterized by a shy, alert, almost nervous
manner, and its harsh cry uttered when the safety of its nest is threatened and at
roosting time. Even its song bears some similarity to that of. its ebony relative,
though harsher in character and in some respects more nearly approaching that
of the Song Thrush ; its habit of interrupting and criticizing its own performance
is also eminently characteristic of the Blackbird : its call-note is a thin piercing
whistle, like that of our other Thrushes. The harsh gurrrh, characteristic of the
Missel and Song Thrushes, can hardly be the true call note, since they certainly
call to one another in the still more unpleasant whistled note above mentioned.
The food of the Ring-Ouzel consists of worms, slugs, snails, insects and
their grubs, many kinds of berries, small fruits such as currants, gooseberries,
blackberries, cherries, grapes and also plums.
Seebohm says : — "A true bird of the wilderness, it prefers the deepest
solitudes that our land affords. Truly, indeed, the Ring-Ouzel's home is a wild
•This sound is usually rendered by the word talc: >)ut there is a thickness about the initial letter better
represented \yy ch: the almost metallic flint splitting sound which I render t/!!'«/.-, in the account of the Black-
bird, has been incorrectly written as "pink" : a Blackbird is as likely to say "purple" as "pink"
The Black Throated Thrush. a?
and romantic one. You will first make his acquaintance where the heath begins,
where the silver birch trees are scattered amongst the rock fragments, and the
gorse bushes and stunted thorn and bracken are the last signs of more lowland
vegetation. The scenery gets wilder, but still the bird is your companion ; he
flits from rock to rock before you, or, by making long detours, returns to the
place whence you flushed him, uttering his loud, harsh, and discordant call-notes.
The hills of Derbyshire are one of his favourite haunts : almost on the very
summit of Kinder Scout, the highest peak of the High Peak, nearly two
thousand feet above the sea level, the Ring-Ouzels rear their young."
I cannot speak personally as to the Ring-Ouzel's suitability for cage life ;
so far as I have been able to judge, from the specimens occasionally exhibited at
bird shows, it appears to be as easily tamed as our other Thrushes ; but it is
possible that these specimens may have been hand-reared birds : I certainly never
heard one of them attempt to sing. There are several reasons for this dumb
behaviour in captive birds ; some that will not sing at all in a cage, warble
splendidly in an aviary ; then, insufiiciently nourishing, or unnatural food may be
the cause, the first from its lowering effect and the second by making the
prisoner feel positively ill. Birds which are accustomed, when wild, to feed
almost entirely on insects and fruit, are provided at our shows with a mess of
finely grated raw beef and bread crumbs : on such hopelessly unnatural diet, it is
no marvel, not merely that they feel disinclined to sing, but if they die before
their term of punishment is completed.
With the Ring-Ouzel, in the writer's opinion, the true British "Thrushes,"
so called, should terminate. Other species recorded as belonging to our fauna,
in works upon the Birds of Great Britain, are : —
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— TURD I N^.
The Black Throated Thrush.
I
Turdus atrigularis, Temm.
NTRODUCED, because one young male was shot near Lewes in 1868.
28 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— TURBINE.
The Rock Thrush.
Monticola saxaiilis, Linn.
A DMITTED, because one specimen was shot at Therfield, Herts., in 1843.
So far as I can see, there is no more reason for admitting these birds to
our list, than for excluding the following : —
Family— TURD I D^. Subfamily— TURBINE.
The American Robin.
Turdus viigratorius, LiNN.
OBTAINED at Dover; but excluded, on the ground that it may have
escaped from captivity. In these days of aviculture, even the rarest and
least suspected birds may have reached our shores in this manner.
Family— TURDIDAL. ■ Subfamily— TURBINE.
The Siberian Ground Thrush.
Turdus sibiricus, Pall.
SOME writers admit, and others exclude this species; one example only
having been obtained (on the authority of a dealer) between Guildford
and Godalming, in the winter of 1860-61.
In other branches of Zoology, we should not necessarily regard a species
as British, on the score of one or two examples having been obtained on our
shores : the fact of their occurrence would be recorded, and possibly an
illustration published, but subsequent works would not be considered incomplete
which did not describe them as British.
cc
<
Hi
H
<
X
The Wheatear. a9
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— TURDIN^E.
The Wheatear.
Saxicola ananthe, LiNN.
ALTHOUGH Howard Saunders associates the Wheatears with the "Bush-
chats," he points out the fact that they differ in their longer tails and
white rumps, and states also Dr. Sharpe's belief that the members of the genus
Pratincola are Flycatchers (Muscicapidce) : the habits and actions of Saxicola and
Pratincola are certainly not exactly similar, although a general likeness in the
distribution of colours on the head, gives one the impression of relationship
between them.
The Wheatear is a very remarkable bird in appearance, its head appearing to
be far too large for its body : in stuffed specimens its whole character is invariably
lost by the taxidermist, who produces an indentation, where none exists in life,
just at the back of the skull : illustrations also, being mostly taken from prepared
skins, do not usually do justice to the bull-headed Robin-like aspect of the living
bird.
Occurring all over the Western Palsearctic region from Greenland to Africa,
and eastward through Siberia to North China, the Wheatear is also found in
Eastern N. America and Behring's Straits ; it is common, though local, throughout
Great Britain, arriving early in March and departing in September; but its
numbers increase as one travels northward, comparatively few pairs breeding in
the southern counties. In winter it occurs both in North and West Africa, whilst
Asiatic examples migrate to Mongolia, N. India and Persia, and American birds
travel as far as the Bermudas.
The male Wheatear in breeding plumage has the upper parts grey, the wings
dark brown and black, the rump white, the two central tail-feathers black to near
base, the others white, broadly tipped with black ; forehead and superciliary streak
white ; lores and ear-coverts black ; under surface of body pale buff, slightly deeper
on throat and breast ; but in old birds almost white, with throat and breast buff;
under wing-coverts and axillaries mottled with dark grey and white; bill black,
feet black, iris dark brown.
The female is huffish brown, darker above, the ear-coverts dark brown instead
of black. In autumn owing to the broad pale buff borders to the new feathers,
the male nearly resembles the female; but during the winter these borders seem
to be partly lost and the colour (as with that in the plumage of many other birds)
30 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
grows in the feathers themselves without a further moult.*
Young birds are spotted above and below, the feathers of the wings and tail
being also edged and tipped with biiff.
The name Wheatear is derived from the words white and the Anglo-Saxon
cers (rump); I believe the bird is still called '■'■ Whitus'" by the peasantry in some
parts of England; it is also known by the names of "Stone c/atter" and
"■ Clacharan" (Little mason.)
In Kent I have seen this bird but once, and then only on a wild neglected
piece of grass-land close to a cultivated watercress stream ; in the side of a bank
overhanging this stream was a hollow, probably the end of a mole burrow, which
had been cut across to lengthen the bed of the stream ; and, in this hollow was
the Wheatear's nest ; unfortunately she had not commenced to lay. In the same
place a lady friend obtained eggs of this species the year before.
In June, 1886, I saw a considerable number of Wheatears : they were flying
about the broken cliffs between Yarmouth and Caister, where sand and patches of
reedy grass are commingled over irregular slopes and hollows ; an expanse desolate
indeed in appearance, but the home of numerous rabbits, whose burrows in every
direction form traps for the heedless pedestrian. I looked in many a hole for
nests, but my search was not rewarded. I thought of, and put into practice, the
advise given in the following extract from Yarrell, 4th edition, to no purpose.
"When the nest is in a rabbit-burrow it is not unfrequently visible from the
exterior, but when under a rock it is often placed a long way from the entrance,
and out of sight. It can nearly always be found with certainty, by watching the
hen-bird ; and Salmon says that on the large warrens of Suffolk and Norfolk its
position is easily detected by the considerable number of small pieces of the
withered stalks of the brake amassed at the entrance of the burrow. When the
place of concealment, however, is beneath a rock or earth- fast stone, the nest is
often inaccessible to the finder."
In addition to its favourite rabbit-burrow, the Wheatear utilizes heaps of
stones, niches in walls, peat-stacks, or banks ; or even hollows partly sheltered by
a large clod or stone, as building sites. The nest is a rather large and flattish
structure, losely formed of very fine dried grass, sometimes rootlets and a little
moss, and lined with feathers and hair, or hair alone. The eggs are said to vary
from four to eight in number, six being the usual clutch ; they are somewhat
elongated, pale greenish blue, and (almost invariably) unspotted, but very rarely
* In the case of the Indigo Bunting of N. America, the change from brown winter plumage to the bright
blue and green of the breeding dress, is chiefly due to a gradual growth of the bright colouring in the feathers,
comparatively few feathers being shed : I have the skin of a bird which died half through its spring change,
showing the feathers in their transitional stage.
The Wheatear. 31
there are a few very indistinct purplisli dots at the larger end.
The Wheatear is largely insectivorous, capturing much of its food on the
wing after the manner of the Flycatchers. It also eats larvse of various insects,
spiders, small worms and molluscs, but in the autumn it also eats the wild moor-
land fruits : it is a pretty sight to watch this bird perched upon a wall, its tail
swaying up and down like that of a Wagtail : presently you see it jerk its
head upwards and off it darts with graceful fluttering flight after some passing
beetle or fly, which it captures without difficulty. If you creep up to watch
more closely, it waits until perhaps only a few yards intervene between you and
it, then away it flits, somewhat after the fashion of a Wagtail, to some more
distant rock. When searching for the nest in Norfolk and hoping that the bird
would reveal its proximity by returning, after a short journey in one direction, to
some previously occupied rock, we found that it still flew before us from rock to
rock ; it became evident that our fruitless search could only be explained by the
fact that we were too late upon the scene.
The Wheatear first arrives in the south of England towards the end of
March, the males reaching our shores a little earlier than the females, but they
usually begin to build about the middle of April and the nest may be found from
this time to about the middle of May, but although the species is double-brooded,
the June nests seem less easy to discover, possibly they may be more carefully
concealed, or the increased power of the sun makes stooping more irksome to the
searcher. In August and September numbers congregate together, in preparation
for their migration to the south ; at this season many are snared by the shepherds
on the Sussex Downs and destroyed for food ; by the beginning of October most
of the survivors have left the country.
The song of this bird is a short, but not unpleasant warbling, but its call
notes are less musical, resembling the sharp chink, chack, chack produced by the
concussion of a flint and steel.
In confinement the Wheatear or "Clod," as the London birdcatchers call it,
soon gains confidence in the goodwill of its owner and flies up to the wires to
take flies or mealworms from his fingers; it is a peaceful law-abiding subject;
but when some favourite morsel has been snatched from under its very bill, it
sometimes shows its annoyance by the sharp click of its mandibles, characteristic
of most insectivorous birds. The first Wheatear I ever possessed was brought to
me one evening by a small bird-dealer, who informed me that it had been caught
that afternoon and that, if I did not care to give ninepence for it, he meant to
kill and stuff it for one of his customers. Of course I bought it, turned it into
a large flight cage in my study and hoped to reconcile it to captivity. Unlike
32 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
many birds when newly caught, this Wheatear appeared to be quite at home at
once, but I could not succeed in inducing it to eat anything but mealworms and
house-flies ; berries it would not look at, and soft food it regarded with utter
contempt : in three days it died.
A second specimen was brought to me, about nine years later, by a friend
who had already kept it for about a week, in a room with other British Birds.
I turned it out with Wagtails and other birds in a large unheated aviary ; it took
kindly to the soft food from the first, and ate a good many cockroaches daily ;
passed through the winter without mishap, came into full breeding plumage and
commenced to sing in the spring : sometimes, but rarel)', it sang on the wing ;
it usually preferred to sit close to a wide casement, which is kept open during
the mild weather, and warble at intervals. When a fly passed into the aviary,
it had little chance of escaping ; the Wheatear, a Redstart and a Grey Wagtail
were all after it at once, and the Redstart was generally the winner ; the
Wheatear coming in second, and the Wagtail rarely getting a chance, in spite
of its marvellous aerial acrobatic powers. Unfortunately this bird did not live
many months ; before I had kept it a year it died suddenly ; although, the day
previously, it had appeared to be in excellent health.
Other species of Wheatears have been admitted into the British list, but
their claim to this position is based upon the chance occurrence of one or two
examples in this country. Whilst denying that this gives them a title to the
name of Britisher, it may perhaps be as well to record their names : —
Family— TUDID^. Subfamily— TURDIN^.
The Isabelline Wheatear.
Saxicola isabellina, RuPP.
ADMITTED to be an English bird on the ground that a single female
example was shot at AUonby, in Cumberland, on the nth November, 1887.
The Black Throated Wheatear. The Desert Wheatear, The Whinchat. 33
Family— TURDIDAL. • Stcbfamily—TURDIN/^.
The Black Throated Wheatear.
A
Saxicola stapazina, ViEILL.
SINGLE male specimen was shot near Bury, in Lancashire, about the 8th
May, 1875 ; it belonged to the Eastern race of the species.
Family— TURDIDAi. Subfamily— TURDINyE.
The Desert Wheatear.
Saxicola deserti, RtJPP.
A MALE was shot near Alloa in Clackmannanshire, on the 26th November,
1880, a female on the Holderness coast, Yorkshire, on the 17th October,
1885, and a second near Arbroath on the 28th December, 1887.
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— TURDINAi.
The Whinchat.
Pratiyicola rubetra, LiNN.
BREEDS in suitable localities throughout Northern and Central Europe, its
eastern boundary in European Russia being probably the Ural Mountains ;
it winters in Southern Europe and Northern Africa, extending its range west-
ward to Fantee and eastward to Abyssinia. It also occurs in Arabia, Asia
Minor and Northern India : but in the Indian examples the relative length of
the primaries is said to differ, and the birds themselves are larger than ours.
In Great Britain the Whinchat is pretty generally distributed; being abundant
in certain localities, but absent from many districts of Scotland, and somewhat
local in Ireland.
Vol. I G
34 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
The Whinchat above is blackish brown, the feathers edged with sandy buflF,
slightly redder on the upper tail-coverts; wings dark brown, smaller coverts
white; two central tail-feathers dark brown, white at base; other tail-feathers
with the basal half white and the terminal half dark brown, with buff margins ;
a clear white superciliary streak ; lores, ear-coverts and cheeks dark brown :
chin white, continuous with a streak bounding the lower part of the cheek and
sides of neck ; throat and breast reddish fawn colour, shading into buff towards
centre of belly; under tail-coverts also buff; bill and feet black; iris brown.
This bird is most commonly seen on broad open commons, heathery
mountain slopes, pastures (whence its local name of "Grass -chat,") meadows
and wild briar-clad wastes ; it haunts both mountain and valley, hill and dale,
and wherever vast tracts of furze-covered land exist, it may be confidently
looked for: to this it owes its common nickname of "Fuz-chat," the only title,
I believe, by which the London birdcatchers recognize it. In some districts it
is also known by the name "Utick" on account of its call note u-tic, u-tac or
u-chack.
I first met with the Whinchat in fair numbers, about the middle of May,
amongst the gorse bushes covering a wide expanse not far from Detling, on the
road from Sittingbourne to Maidstone. The birds were dotted about here and
there on the topmost sprays of the gorse, whence every half minute or so they
darted off after some insect, returning almost invariably to the same perch.
Every few minutes one of them would flit off, warbling softly, to some distant
bush, under which it would dive ; but when I imagined that its nest was there
concealed, and walking straight to that point, began carefully to seek for it,
I invariably found that there not only was no trace of a nest, either in or
under the bush, but that the mischievous bird had simply passed through an
opening and onwards, perchance in some new direction with the distinct purpose
of misleading me, or else had sought some fresh article of diet below the
shelter of that prickly cover.
The Whinchat is very largely insectivorous, its food consisting chiefly of
insects, their larvae and spiders : it also eats small worms, small molluscs, and
it has been known to feed upon growing corn : it is a great friend to the
farmer, on account of its fondness for wireworms (the larvae of spring-back
beetles) ; these it obtains in considerable numbers in the Spring when the land
lies fallow ; and later, when the young turnips are opening their first leaves, it
is a great enemy to the destructive turnip fly. I have tried it with the turnip
beetle, but the offensive red ink flavour of this insect was too much for it, and
it turned away in disgust after tasting the first sample: berries, which (I
The Whinchat. 35
believe) the Whinchat has been credited with eating, and red or white currants,
it refused even to glance at.
The nidification of the Whinchat commences early in May and I have seen
nests of fresh eggs which were taken quite a month later; but, in that case,
the first nests had been robbed: although this species has been stated to be
double-brooded, the evidence in support of that belief requires confirmation; the
male bird certainly ceases to sing in July ; this, one would not expect to be the
case, unless it had concluded its domestic duties. The nest is usually placed on
the ground among grass or heather; sometimes in the middle of a field or
under shelter of a hedge, freqently under a furze bush, either on the ground
or just above it among the branching stems : it is a large and rather loose
structure formed of bents, fibrous roots and somtimes a little moss, and is lined
with fine dry grass and hair.
The eggs vary from four to six, the latter being the usual number; they
are greenish blue, in tint not unlike those of the Hedge Accentor, but generally
of a less perfect oval, the larger, as well as the smaller extremity being some-
what pointed ; they are finely speckled with reddish brown, the dots forming a
pale zone round the larger end. The parents are very wary in discovering the
position of their treasures, and will not approach the nest when they discover
the presence of an intruder ; but, if by chance you wander towards it, they fly
round your head in the greatest anxiety uttering a thin dismal cry, which to
me sounded like the word is7vee, varied at times by their call note u-tic : I have
also seen them drop on the grass and scramble along as if injured, apparently
with the object of inviting pursuit; a trick which, did they but know it, only
renders the bird'snester more satisfied that he is on the right scent.
The flight of the Whinchat is graceful and undulating, and during the
breeding-season consists of short journeys from bush to bush, varied by aerial
evolutions in pursuit of gnats or other small winged insects. Suddenly it swoops
downwards as it perceives some tiny beetle on a grass stem, to which as it seizes
its prey, it clings for a moment with fluttering wings, then darts away to the
topmost spray of a whin bush, and watches with ever springing tail for another
victim. To the novice in the study of bird life this active little fellow is a
revelation.
Seebohm says: — "Although the Whinchat so often chooses a perch near the
ground, it by no means shuns the trees, and, especially towards the end of
summer, it is seen with its young brood high up amongst the branches. The
bird does not show that partiality for walls and rocks which is so marked a
feature of the Redstart or Wheatear. In the pastoral districts the Whinchat,
36 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs
directly after its arrival, frequents the fallows which are being worked for the
turnip crops, and on these places is found almost continuously until the neigh-
bouring pastures afford it sufficient shelter. The Whinchats never roost in trees,
but always on the ground. When they first arrive we find them at night on the
fallows, but for the remainder of the season grass fields and turnip lands are
frequented. In the wilder parts of its haunts the Whinchat roosts amongst the
heath and the tangled undergrowth of gorse covert and brake. Another remark-
able trait in the character of this bird is its activity in the dusk of the evening,
a time probably when some insect that forms its favourite food is abundant ; and
its well known call notes may be heard long after the birds themselves are con-
cealed from view by the falling shadows of night."
This species is not a resident bird, although a few instances have been
recorded of its passing the winter in England. It arrives in the South of
England about the middle of April, reaching our northern counties a week or
two later: late in September it again journeys southwards.
My second captive Whinchat was given to me early in September, 1893, and
I turned it into an aviary with other British birds and a pair of Rosa's Parrakeet.
I found it very shy ; but unfortunately I was unable to keep it long enough to
judge whether it was likely to overcome its want of confidence ; for, within a week,
one of the Parrakeets caught it and crushed its skull, thus not only killing it but
rendering it useless as a cabinet specimen. . It took readily to the usual soft food
mixture, commencing, like all soft-billed birds with the egg and ants' cocoons
and only eating the bread and potato when these failed ; it was especially keen
on mealworms, probably not discovering any difference between them and its
natural diet of wireworms, and it devoured a considerable number of small
cockroaches ; flies and small moths it pursued and caught on the wing. It
usually passed the night either on the earth or upon some twigs stuck into the
earth. At times it uttered its thin piercing cry and its singular call-note; but,
at that season, I, of course, could not expect it to sing. When anyone entered the
aviary it flew wildly from side to side ; but, at other times contented itself with
keeping at a respectful distance, never showing any anxiety to escape, or
even that restless impatience of captivity characteristic of the Hedge
Accentor and many other small birds, when freshly captured.
<
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The Stonechat. , 37
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— TURBINE.
The Stonechat.
Pratincola rubicola, LiNN.
INHABITS the central and milder parts of Northern Europe and southwards
to Asia Minor, Palestine and North Africa ; specimens have also been obtained
south of Senegal.
In Great Britain the Stonechat is resident and breeds locally in every county
of Great Britain and Ireland, as also in the Hebrides : in the Orkney and Shetland
Islands it is known to occur, but not to breed.
The Stonechat is a very handsome little bird, especially when in breeding
plumage. The male has the whole of the feathers of the upper surface (excepting
those of the upper tail-coverts which are white) dull black fringed with tawny
brown ; the head from a line above the eye and the throat velvety-black ; wings
and tail blackish brown ; smaller wing-coverts, bases of inner secondaries and sides
of neck broadly white ; under parts tawny-rufous, deepest on the breast and sides,
almost white at centre of chest, but shading into buff on abdomen ; bill and feet
ebony-black, iris dark brown. The female is altogether duller in colouring ; the
white wing-patch smaller, the tail-coverts reddish brown, the throat mottled with
black. In winter the white on the sides of the neck becomes mottled with tawny,
the secondaries have broad tawny borders and either whitish or tawny tips, the
tail-feathers are also broadly bordered with buff; the ear-coverts, chin and throat
feathers are also slightly tipped on the fringe with tawny or white, and
the upper part of the white neck-patch is mottled with tawny. The nestling is
spotted above and below, and does not show the dark throat, or white patches of
the adult bird; but, in other respects, resembles it in its winter plumage.
Though so different from the Whinchat in pattern, this species resembles it
greatly in form and in its habits ; it frequents similar localities — wild heathery
moorland, gorse-clad commons, uncultivated broken ground, dotted with bush and
bramble, with here and there loose stones, or bedded rocks moss-grown and
venerable : in such haunts the Whinchat breeds, and there he may be seen poised
on the topmost spray of the flowering furze with ever restless tail, anon darting
from bush to bush with undulating flight, or hovering mothlike to seize some
Vol. I. ' ■ H
38 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
fluttering insect. All attempts of the stranger to investigate its family concerns
are met by the Stonechat with alarm and resentment ; to anyone seeking the nest
it is most confusing to hear the two parent birds chacking in different places,
rarely in the same bush ; the male also from time to time uttering a queer double
note, in which he seems to proclaim himself a Wheatear.*
The nest is frequently placed in some depression of the soil partly or wholly
concealed by herbage, below a furze-bush, or shrub ; so that one may look beneath
the very cover where it is situated, and not perceive it ; it is always on the
ground: its construction is loose, but tolerably neat, dry grass or rootlets and a
little moss being used for the outside; finer grass, hair, feathers and sometimes
wool, for the lining.
The eggs vary from four to six in number, and are not unlike those of the
Whinchat; but they are greener in tint, and usually much more heavily zoned
and spotted with red-brown ; the spotting sometimes covers a much larger area ;
but frequently forms a suffused patch on the larger end, or a broad belt near the
end ; occasionally it is barely indicated : I once took eggs of the Spotted Flycatcher
similarly marked, and which, but for their slightly paler ground-tint, might
have been mistaken for eggs of this species.
The song of the Stonechat is soft, low, irregular but rather pleasant to listen
to ; it reminds me somewhat of the first efforts of the Indigo- Bunting of N.
America, when that bird is "recording" his song. The call-note, which has
nothing to do with his scolding, or complaining notes, is a sharp tsik, tsik, tsik,
almost like the sound produced by striking two flints together.
The Stonechat feeds on insects, their larvae, spiders, small worms, and during
the winter on seeds : moths and butterflies it catches on the wing, and I was
much interested, on one occasion, in watching it in pursuit of a Vapourer-moth,
the circling onward flight of which seemed for some time to bafile it, though
success at last rewarded its efforts to seize it. I have seen a House-Sparrow
utterly nonplussed by the progressive gyrations of this little moth ; the difficulty
of catching it being increased by the fact that, when pursued, it constantly rises
higher and higher; in the capture of such a moth only a bird with the agility
of a Flycatcher or Wagtail can hope for success.
The flight of this species is short and undulating, its greatest efforts being
made in pursuit of prey : when roosting or hopping, its tail is incessantly in
motion : if terrified, this bird seems to prefer concealment to flight, always seeking
the densest cover in the immediate neighbourhood, but sometimes revealing its
whereabouts by uttering its alarm cry : even when the nest is approached, as already
* This scolding note is best expressed by the words hweet-jurr, the terminal r having a vibrant sound.
The Stonechat, 39
hinted, the Stonechat is only seen when flitting from bush to bush, but it is heard
incessantly.
I have only once had an opportunity of studying this species as an aviary
bird. Mr. E. P. Staines of Penge, an enthusiastic student of British cage-birds
gave me a specimen, at the same time that he also brought me my Whinchat, in
September 1893 : I turned it into the same aviary, and although I kept it for
over a year, it ultimately lost its life from a similar cause, a Rosa's Parrakeet
breaking one of its legs at the mid-tarsal or so-called knee-joint. I caged the
bird up separately, after binding the limb up, but it only survived two days.
In the aviary the Stonechat is gentle and extremly lively ; never quarrelling,
but often obtaining a delicacy by superior activity : thus I have seen it seize a
spider from under the very bill of a Wagtail and carry it half across the aviary
before the larger bird had solved the problem as to how it had disappeared : it
was also very expert in catching white butterflies on the wing, though it frequently
lost them through getting hold of their wings only.
The Stonechat took to soft food without hesitation, and, many a time when
the other inhabitants of the aviary were waiting for a fresh supply, I have seen
him alight on the edge of the Parrakeet's seed-pan and swallow canary and millet :
possibl}^ it was in this manner he got in the way of one of these treacherous birds,
and so lost his life. Of cockroaches he was inordinately fond, jumping into the
beetle-trap and flinging them out, or swallowing the smaller ones at a gulp :
sometimes he would snatch out a large female by one leg and fling the body away,
following it up and again catching at a second leg with the same action, until he
had completely dismembered the body, which would then be swallowed entire : it
is astonishing to see what large morsels can be gulped down by these little birds !
This bird often sang in the early spring ; but, as in its wild state, its warbling
ceased entirely before the end of June : it was fairly tame, but would not actually
take an insect from my fingers, always waiting until I dropped it, before attempt-
ing to secure it : like all insectivorous birds, it was more keen on spiders than
anything else, and the larger they were the better it was pleased.
40 British Brids, with their Nests and Eggs.
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— TURDIN At.
The Redstart.
Ruticilla phcenicurus, LiNN.
BREEDS tlirougliout Central Europe as far as the North Cape and in the
Pine regions of Southern Europe; where, however, it is rarely seen
excepting on migration ; in winter it migrates to Northern Africa, the Canaries,
Madeira, Senegal, Abyssinia, Arabia and Persia. It is pretty generaly distributed
throughout Great Britain, though locally scarce ; its occurrence in the Orkneys
and Shetlands and in Ireland is rare, and it is unknown in the Hebrides.
The male bird in breeding plumage is very attractive, vaguely resembling
the Robin in front and the Nightingale at the back. The upper surface is slaty
grey, with rufous-brown tips to the feathers; the back of forehead and an
irregular line over the eye white ; rump and upper tail-coverts chestnut red ;
the two central tail feathers dark brown, the others chestnut red ; wings smoky
brown, secondaries with pale buff margins to the outer webs ; base of forehead,
face, ear-coverts, chin and throat black ; chest and axillaries chestnut red ;
abdomen and flanks tawny buff: bill and feet black, iris brown. The female
is altogether duller in colouring without the bright hues on the head and with
the under surface paler. Both sexes in autumn have long white fringes to the
feathers, giving them a greyish appearance which disappears in the Spring.*
Nestlings are spotted both above and below and, but for their redder tails, might
be almost mistaken for young Robins.
The Redstart is a summer visitant to Great Britain usually arriving in
April, though its advent is somewhat dependent on the state of the temperature.
It goes to nest in May, and in September flits by night to its winter quarters.
The favourite haunts of this species are ivy-grown rocks and ruins ; old
walls round gardens and orchards ; plantations ; shrubberies ; scattered open wood-
land with ancient timber ; groves of birch ; wild commons, on poor and rocky
ground strewn with bramble and brake. I first met with it in the Stockbury
♦ It is usually supposed, that when the plumage of birds alters in the spring, it is done by casting the
pale or dull tips; but, judging from birds of various species which have died in the middle of their tarnsfor-
mation, I feel certain that in many cases the colouring grows in the feathers themselves. I have a Redstart
before me in which the long fringes are partly buff and partly white, whilst the throat feathers are black
excepting at the extreme tips.
I
Redstart
The Redstart. <i
valley in Kent : I was examining a tall roadside hawthorn hedge for nests, when
suddenly a small bird appeared, out of the field at the back, right in the centre
of an open part of the hedge its tail quivering laterally, with a remarkable
springy action quite new to me: at first I wondered what this lovely little
creature could be; and then, suddenly, its identity with the Redstart revealed it-
self, and the next minute it turned and flitted away. The flight is irregular,
jerky and not specially rapid, excepting when the bird is either startled or in
pursuit of prey ; in the latter case I know of no bird of its size which can equal
it in activity, or in its power of doubling; the same may also be said of the
male bird, when in pursuit of another of its own sex.
The food of the Redstart consists of insects and their larvas, spiders,
centipedes and, towards autumn, of unripe com and small fruits: most of its
prey is captured in the air and no insect pursued by it has the least chance of
escaping : it will stop in midflight and poise itself, fluttering in one spot whilst
it seizes a sun-fly ; or, with equal ease, it will follow the wild zigzag wanderings
of the small white butterfly : in pursuit of spiders, it will rise up and down, like
the Humming-bird moth, before old moss-grown walls, searching every crevice
for the lurking victims ; an unwary centipede, projecting its head in a tentative
manner from behind a fragment of loosened bark, or running hurriedly from the
shelter of one boulder to another, is snatched up in a second and devoured ; if a
small green caterpillar crosses a woodland path, the Redstart darts obliquely
down as though hurled from a catapult, alights for one second with quivering
expanded tail, and seizing its victim gives it a bang or two and swallows it. If,
however, the caterpillar is a large one, the bird either remains on the earth until
it has knocked it to a pulp, or carries it to a branch and there, holding it by
the head, strikes it backwards and forwards across its perch : gnats and flies are
caught and swallowed on the wing.
It has been said that the action of the Redstart's tail is vertical, not lateral ; /i^ f/^^v^fid,
but certainly to my eye it is lateral and not vertical, and I have watched it in C^'/jU^ iixe.ZtA^
an avairy for an hour at a time : the action bears no resemblance whatever to
that of either the Whinchat or Stonechat, but consists of a sudden lateral
springiness with a slight expansion of the feathers. I repeatedly called the attention
of others to this abnormal tail-movement and everyone who saw it agreed with
me that it was a vibrant wag. When the bird is at rest on a branch, every
thought of the little creature seems to be emphasized by a jerk, or an expansion
of the feathers.
Nidification commences early in May, the site being just such as a Robin
would select ; a hole in a tree or wall, but sometimes a hollow gate post, or a
42 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
flower pot is chosen : it is usually not far from the ground. The nest itself is
externally carelessly constructed of dry grass, rootlets, moss and sometimes a
little wool, the interior being carefully lined with hair and feathers : the number
of eggs varies from five to eight, though rarely exceeding six; in colour they
much resemble those of the Hedge Accentor, but are slightly paler and more
glossy.
Although the Redstart usually builds in holes and under cover, instances
have been recorded of its forming its nest in an exposed situation; thus in the
"Zoologist" for 1888, pp. 352-3, Rev. H. A. Macpherson says: —
"In June last, Mr. Bell of Liddle Bank, Dumfriesshire, an enthusiastic field
naturalist, was kind enough to ask my friend Mr. Baily and myself to spend a
couple of days in bird'snesting with him on the Liddell. I was detained at home,
but Mr. Baily went, and on his return reported the find of a Redstart's nest
built into an old nest of a Song- Thrush. There was no doubt about the owner-
ship of the nest, for the hen bird was seen sitting on the eggs, two of which
were taken."
"The Thrush's nest measures about four inches across, and that of the Red-
start two inches and one fifth inside measurement : the former was placed in a
thorn bush, and was, therefore, open to the sky, though well concealed by
branches above. I have seen a good many Redstarts' nests, but I can only recall
one instance in my own experience in which a nest of R. phmnicurus, has been
open to the sky. The nest in question was placed in a thick bush, and was
surrounded by thickets."
The song of the Redstart is uttered either on the wing, or when perching ;
it is both insignificant and monotonous, somewhat resembling that of the Wren,
though much more feeble ; its call-note is wheet-tit-tit and its note of alarm a
melancholy wheel: when courting, like some other species, it records its song;
that is to say, it sings it in a whisper, omitting the louder notes.
As an aviary bird, I have found the Redstart especially pleasing; it is quite
hardy, provided that plenty of insects can be supplied daily, it rapidly becomes
very tame and confiding, and is a most ornamental addition to one's feathered
family.
In September, 1893, Mr. Staines brought me a healthy example, which I
turned out with the Stonechat and Whinchat into one of my unheated aviaries,
disregarding utterly the reputed extreme delicacy of this species. That winter
the thermometer on several occasions registered ten or twelve degrees of
frost, nevertheless the Redstart was not in the least disturbed by the cold,
but seemed quite at home and happy. Every morning I put a "Demon
The Redstart. 49
beetle trap" into the aviary, and the Redstart was the first bird to rush in among
the evil-smelling captives, seize one and fly off with it : no sooner was the first
swallowed than he was back again for another, and so on until he was sated :
he was always actively flying about, and when I put in the saucer of soft food he
invariably skimmed over it snatching up a fragment of yolk of egg, whilst the
saucer was still in my hand. If I offered mealworms or spiders in my fingers it
was always the Redstart who snatched the first, flying up to the wires and either
poising with rapidly fluttering wings, almost like a Humming-bird, or clutching
the wire work with his claws for one second, to ensure a correct aim at the
dainty.
I found the Redstart rather fond of red and white currants in the early
summer, and in the autumn thin slices of apple were pecked to pieces by it ; but
white butterflies seemed to form its favourite morsels and the astounding manner
in which it would swallow one after another (wings and all) was worth the
attention of visitors to my collection. One thing I specially noted ; in common
with every migratory species which I have kept, the Redstart failed to show any
access of restlessness as the season of migration approached. Personally I do not
believe, for a moment, that any bird, properly attended to in the matter of food,
in an aviary, is even aware that there is a season of migration.
Aviculturists go at night and glare at their birds, with the moon lighting
up their eyes into balls of fire, and the frightened creatures bang about recklessly
in their terror of the vague monster near their cages. The verdict is: — "See
the effect of the migratory instinct!" There may possibly be an inherited desire
in some birds to travel at the approach of cold weather, but the true explanation
of the so-called "migratory instinct" in birds is, to most of them, merely another
name for short commons ; and, to the more delicate species, the added discomfort
of chilly nights. It must also be borne in mind that, at all seasons of the year,
birds in aviaries are extremely restless on bright moonlight nights, the clear
white light with the black shadows which accompany it, seem to startle birds ;
and, if your bedroom window is above an aviary, you will hear your captives
thumping the wirework at the end of each flight, at all hours of the night:
moreover the resident birds are quite as much given to this somewhat risky
exercise as the migratory species.
During the winter of 1894-5 the temperature of my unheated aviaries was
unusually low; on one night (when the cold outside was very intense, two
degrees below zero, in fact) the thermometer registered twenty-one degrees of
frost in the passage between these aviaries ; my Redstart, however, was as lively
as before, and I hoped to keep him for many years in health ; but one night,
44 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
during his spring change of plumage, he crept into a log-nest and died : I am
afraid that, in spite of abundant insect food, the cold of that winter was rather
too much for him; yet he was bright and active to the last day of his life,
showing no symptoms of distressed breathing, or any other signs of impending
dissolution.
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— TURD IN/E.
The Black Redstart.
Ruticilla titys, ScOP.
RESPECTING the geographical distribution of the Black Redstart, Seebohm
writes: — "In the south it extends from Portugal through Algeria to
Palestine. Northwards its range becomes more restricted, and apparently does not
extend east of the valleys of the Dneister and the Vistula or north of Holstein.
In autumn stragglers have been known to occur in West Russia, Scandinavia, the
north of England, Scotland, and Ireland, the Faroes (on the authority of Captain
Feilden), and even, it is said, as far as Iceland. North of the Alps it is for the
most part a migratory bird, though a few are known to frequent situations where
open water is to be found during the winter. South of the Alps it is found
throughout the year, its numbers being increased during winter, its range at that
season extending as far south as Nubia." "As the Black Redstart very rarely
occurs in Norfolk, and has not been recorded from the Lincolnshire coast, it
seems probable that the birds which visit our islands come from Holland, where
it is exceedingly common, and follow the coast, choosing the shortest passage
across the Channel."
This is an autumn and winter visitant to our southern coasts, being most com-
monly met with in Devon and Cornwall ; but whether it really remains to breed
with us has been questioned : eggs supposed to belong to this bird have, from
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The Black Redstart. 45
time to time been obtained in various localities, but in no case have the birds
themselves been satisfactorily identified in connection with these eggs : thus an
egg, believed by several eminent Ornithologists to be that of the Black Redstart,
was passed round at a Meeting of the Zoological Society in 1878, by the Rev. R.
P. Barron, M.A. ; he having obtained it with two others in Hertfordshire in 1876.
This egg was sent to me for illustration in my "Handbook of British Oology,"
together with the remains of the nest: Mr. Barron writing respecting it as
follows : —
"The nest, I fear, is not very perfect, having been two years left in its place;
it was found in the middle of May, 1876, right inside the hollow trunk of a living
elm-tree, at a distance of about seven or eight feet from the ground, in a projecting
ledge of the inside wood, and within a few feet of a small lake. There were
originally three eggs, of a slightly pinkish tint before being blown ; they had been
forsaken; the nest seemed to be lined with hair and hay. You need not, of
course, return the egg or nest."
When I received this egg I was satisfied, from the distinctly unhesitating
decision of well-known authorities, that it was a genuine Black Redstart's ; by
daylight, it then showed a scarcely perceptible bluish green tinge, which has since
entirely faded : looking at it now in conjunction with the remains of the nest, I
see no reason why it should not be a white egg of the common Robin.
With regard to Mr. Stirling's nests, he does indeed note that in one instance
the hen was engaged in incubation; but, as he does not appear to have secured
her, and all his nests were found in hedges or thorn fencing, the nidification of
this species in Great Britain must still remain unproved, so far as his observations
are concerned. His account however is worth quoting:— ("Birds of Sherwood
Forest," pp. 67, 68) "My first acquaintance with it was the discovery, on May
17th, 1854, of a nest in a thorn hedge by the side of the road leading from
Ollerton to Edwinstowe. It was placed about four and a half feet from the
ground, and was constructed of dry bents, intermingled with a little moss, and
lined with hair. When I found it, it contained four eggs ; had it remained
undisturbed, I have no doubt they would have increased to the usual number of
six, as the female was on the nest. As it was, I appropriated them as a valuable
addition to my collection. This, however, was not a solitary instance, for two
years later, on May i8th, 1856, another nest was taken from the same hedge,
near the place from which I had taken the previous one ; it contained one egg,
which was brought by the finder to me. A third nest was taken the next day at
Ollerton; it was placed in the side of a cattle hovel, amongst the thorns with
which the upright framework was interlaced, and was constructed of dry grass
Vol. I. I
46 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
only, and lined, as were the others with hair.
The second nest had moss mixed with the grass, like the first."
I have eggs of the Yellow-Hammer which might easily be mistaken for
those of the Black Redstart; they are small for the species, being evidently
deposited by a young bird, and are pure white. Unless the female was distinctly
identified on the nest before she slipped away, it is possible that she may have
belonged to quite another species : white eggs occur now and again with many
birds, and it is probable that the same hen would lay white eggs year after year.
The Black Redstart in breeding plumage has the upper parts slate-greyish,
the rump and upper tail-coverts chestnut ; wings brown, with the secondaries
broadly bordered with white on their outer webs ; tail chestnut, with the two
central feathers brown ; forehead, face, chin, throat, breast, axillaries and under
wing coverts black; belly and flanks buff; bill black, feet blackish, iris brown.
The female is much diiller than the male, being smoky brown above and
slightly paler below, the white margins to the secondaries sordid, the chestnut of
rump and tail suffused with brownish. Nestlings are spotted above and below,
but as soon as they acquire their adult plumage they resemble the female ; their
full colouring not being attained until the second year.
In its habits the Black Redstart is very like the Robin, but especially in its
frequent characteristic stoop, accompanied by an upward jerk of the tail, and its
alarm note tek, tek, iek. It appears to court the neighbourhood of mankind,
frequenting farmyards, orchards and gardens ; and, as recorded by Howard
Saunders, "Even in London one frequented the grounds of the Natural History
Museum, South Kensington, from November 1885 until the snow-fall of January
6th, 1886."
The nest of the Black Redstart is usually placed, like that of the commoner
species, in holes in walls or clefts of rocks, but at other times on rafters in sheds
and outhouses, or niches and shelves in old castles or summer houses. No
particular effort is made to conceal it. The structure itself is externally rough
and loose, like that of the Robin ; being composed of twigs, bents, rootlets and
moss ; the lining is neat and well rounded, of hair and sometimes feathers and
cobwebs. The eggs number from four to seven, but usually five ; they are as a
rule pure glossy white, occasionally with a faint bluish tinge and more rarely still
slightly brownish or minutely speckled at the larger end with brown.
Now, although my &gg, when exhibited, was at once pronounced that of the
Black Redstart, it was, unfortunately, found in a nest built in a hollow tree,
and it is believed that this species seldom, if ever, builds in such a situation.
On the other hand there is no reason why some of the considerable numbers
The Black Redstart. 4%
of this species which visit Great Britain when on migration should not remain
to breed with us.
John Cordeaux, in the "Zoologist" for 1893, states that this species is a
very frequent visitor at Flamborough Head ; both in spring and autumn : in
1 89 1, he says, they came in battalions, first some on April 6th and again a
great rush on May loth and nth, scores of fine males being seen in hedges
and gardens. Then again, in the volume of the same publication for 1894, G.
W. Bradshaw records the fact that a male was shot at Ninfield near Bexhill,
on April loth.
It, therefore, seems far from improbable that the discovery of the nest by a
lady in Dumfriesshire in 1889, an account of which was published in the
"Zoologist" for 1890 by Mr. O. Hammond, was genuine; he says: —
"A lady, a near neighbour of mine, who is fond of observing birds, tells me
that about the 1 2th of June last year, she found a nest of the . Black Redstart
about half a mile from Maxwelton, in Dumfriesshire. The nest was in a stone
"dyke" (wall), by the side of a road on a high hill, called "Crossford." The
young were hatched. She tells me that she often went to watch the birds, both
with a field glass and without one ; that they let her get very near, that she is
certain of their identity, and that they were Black, and not Common, Redstarts." '
The food of this species consists of insects and their larvae, spiders, small
Crustacea, and occasionally of small garden fruits : winged insects it captures in
the air, after the manner of the commoner species, beetles, larvae and spiders it
seeks for on the earth, especially on ground which has been newly turned up.
In captivity the usual soft food, with the addition of cockroaches, spiders,
mealworms, or wireworms, will sufl&ce ; but most small insects will be acceptable.
The song of this bird is simple, but the few notes are full and rich : it is
therefore not suprising, seeing how handsomely it is coloured, that it should
sometimes be kept in cage and aviary.
Although not infrequently exhibited at the bird-show of the "Omis"
Society in Berlin, the Black Redstart seems to have rarely put in an appearance
at an English exhibition : I have, however, seen it at the Crystal Palace Show.
I can say nothing experimentally of this species : doubtless it would be easy
to keep, and would make an engaging pet: but it ought to be turned loose in
an aviary. Small insectivorous birds, when permanently kept in cages, rarely
sing and usually die of apoplexy; at least that is my experience, excepting
in the case of the Skylark, Woodlark, Nightingale, and sometimes the Robin:
the last mentioned generally singing more or less, even when caged, but rarely
living long in close captivity.
I
48 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
So long as any part of your domain is infested with cockroaches, you need
never question tlie practicability of keeping Redstarts alive, no matter whetlier
your aviary be warmed or unheated ; if you can give them their daily beetle trap
to forage in. Redstarts will live ; but, if possible, extreme frosts should be avoided.
Family— TURD ID ^. Subfamily— TURDIN^.
The Red-Spotted Bluethroat.
• Cyanecula suecica, Linn.
ALSO known as the "Arctic Blue-throated Robin"; it is an occasional
straggler to Great Britain, but chiefly to the southern and eastern coasts
in autumn and spring; it has, however, been recorded from Scotland.* Seebohm
gfives the following account of its distribution : —
"The Arctic Blue-throat breeds within the Arctic circle, or in the birch-regions
at high elevations of more southerly climes, both in Europe and Asia; in the
latter continent it breeds as far south as the Himalayas, and occasionally crosses
Behring's Straits into Alaska. The European birds pass through Central and
Southern Europe and Palestine on migration, and winter in North Africa as far
south as Abyssinia; whilst the Asiatic birds, with the exception of those individ-
uals breeding at high elevations in the south, pass through Turkestan, Mongolia,
and North China, and winter in Baluchistan, India and Celyon, Burma, the
Andaman Islands, and South China."
The male Bluethroat in breeding plumage has the upper surface brown ; the
tail-coverts chestnut, the two central tail feathers dark brown, the remainder with
the basal half chestnut and the outer half dark brown; a white or pale buff
superciliary stripe from the base of the upper mandible to some distance behind
* About sixteen or seventeen instances of its occurrence had been recorded up to 1877, but in September
1883, considerable numbers where observed on the eastern coast (chiefly in Norfolk) and a still greater number in
1884.
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The Red-Spotted Bluethroat. 49
the eye ; the cheeks, chin, throat and gorget glossy cobalt blue, centred with
chestnut, bordered with black, and then on the chest again bounded by a belt of
chestnut ; remainder of under parts huffish white ; the wing coverts and axillaries
yellower; bill black, feet brown, iris brown.
The female is much duller, showing none of the blue or chestnut colouring
of the male until old, when she sometimes more nearly resembles him in hues ;
the band across her chest is dark brown.
In the autumn much of the bright colouring is lost, the new feathers being
broadly fringed with grey, but in the spring this bordering disappears.
Young males resemble the female ; but nestlings are streaked with blackish,
and, excepting in the chestnut base to the tail, are not unlike young Robins.
In its habits this species much resembles the Redbreast ; in Heligoland it is
said to frequent potato-fields in the autumn, but in the spring to haunt the
gooseberry and currant-bushes in gardens, or beds planted thickly with cabbages,
just beginning to throw out fresh sprouts. In the north however it is essentially
a marsh-loving bird.
The Rev. H. H. Slater in his " Field notes in Norway " (Zoologist 1883)
says of the Bluethroat: — "Very plentiful on the Dovre Fjeld. At Fokstuen I
might have shot twenty males any day, but the females were great skulkers, and
seldom showed themselves. The note of this bird is remarkably varied, but may
be recognized by the metallic ' ting ting ' with which it usually commences its
warble, which is just like a couple of strokes on a small high-toned triangle. It
also has a peculiar hurried way of singing, as if it were anxious to get to the
end of its song as soon as possible. At Hjerkiem it was very common also, both
in the birch scrub and even in the dwarf willow and juniper scrub above the
birch limit on the fells. I found a nest here with eight eggs, and sat down by
it to blow one of • them. The old birds at once came up and hovered angrily
round me, often within a yard of me, though the eggs were not at all incubated,
the female also quite forgetting her usual anxiety for concealment. Not only
they, biit every other Bluethroat within hearing of this excited couple, hurried up
also, until I must have had about a dozen scolding within ten yards of me at
once ; the moment I rose, however, they all vanished, like Roderick Dhu's
warriors, 'where they stood.' The nest was made of the finest grasses, and
placed in an open space in the birch wood, under a branch of trailing juniper."
The Bluethroat being, as already noted, an inhabitant of marshy land, it
usually constructs its nest either in some chance cavity in the side of one of the
many mounds or hummocks which abound on the irregular fjelds of Lapland and
the tundras of Siberia, or in the more swampy parts of the forest. Naturally it
Vol. I. ' K
so British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
is not easily discovered, unless by chance the incubating female is flushed from
her eggs.
The nest itself is of loose construction, fashioned somewhat like that of the
Robin, the materials used being mostly dried grass and rootlets, the cup being
neatly lined with hair: the five to eight eggs have a greenish ground tint and
are finely speckled and marbled with rufous-brown.
The food of this bird consists of small worms, centipedes, spiders, insects and
their larvae and small seeds of weeds ; the young are fed very largely upon mos-
quitoes, which the parents capture on the wing, after the manner of Flycatchers.
Seebohm gives the following full account of its song : — " On its first arrival
it often warbles in an undertone so low, that you fancy the sound must be
mufiled by the thick tangle of branches in which you think the bird is concealed,
whilst all the time he is perched on high upon the topmost spray of a young fir,
his very conspicuousness causing him to escape detection for the moment. His
first attempts at singing are harsh and grating, like the notes of the Sedge- Warbler,
or the still harsher ones of the Whitethroat ; these are followed by several
variations in a louder and rather more melodious tone, repeated over and over
again, somewhat in the fashion of a Song- Thrush. After this you might fancy
the little songster was trying to mimic the various alarm-notes of all the birds he
can remember ; the chiz-zit of the Wagtail, the tip-tip-tip of the Blackbird, and
especially the whit-whit of the Chaffinch. As he improves in voice, he sings
louder and longer, until at last he almost approaches the Nightingale in the
richness of the melody that he pours forth. Sometimes he will sing as he flies
upwards, descending with expanded wings and tail to alight on the highest bough
of some low tree, almost exactly as the Tree-Pipit does in the meadows of our
own land. When the females have arrived there comes at the end of his song
the most metallic notes I have ever heard a bird utter. It is a sort of tinfr-tinsi,
resembling the sound produced by striking a suspended bar of steel with another
piece of the same metal."
It is curious that the Rev. H. H. Slater should have stated that the Blue-
throat ^''commences'''' its song with the same metallic ting-ting; because, judging
from the few birds I have kept which uttered metallic sounds, I should have
expected the latter, and not Seebohm's version, to be the case.
Gatke in his " Birds of Heligoland" observes : — " One would hardly believe that
the home of so lovely a creature as the Bluethroat extended so far north as the
coast of the Polar Sea, particularly as its beautiful azure blue and rusty orange dress
gives one the impression of its being a native of tropical latitudes. As a matter
of fact, its life is divided between its Arctic nesting stations and its winter quarters,
The Red-Spotted Bluethroat. 51
which extend to the hot regions of central Africa and southern Asia.
The migratory flights of this little bird between regions so widely separated
have furnished the most interesting material towards a final solution of a
hitherto open question, viz: What is the greatest speed attainable by a bird
during its migration flight? and have yielded the astonishing result of one
hundred and eighty geographical miles per hour."*
Why one hardly ever sees this lovely bird in captivityt is a puzzle which
I have never been able to solve ; not only are its plumage and song admitted
to be well-nigh perfect, but it is itself naturally tame and confiding : Gatke
says, for instance : — " If, during one's garden occupations, one pays no special
attention to the bird, or pretends not to notice it, it will for hours long hop
around near one, at twenty, fifteen, or even a less number of paces oif, some-
times in rapid, sometimes in more measured leaps, catching insects the while ;
at each of its many pauses it gives a jerk with its tail, which it has raised
above its wings, and looks around with clear, dark eyes. If, however, it
becomes aware of being watched, it vanishes swift as lightning, in long bounds,
under some shrubs or among some bushes, only, however, after a few moments,
to again make its appearance as simple-hearted as before."
As regards the practicability of securing plenty of examples of this species,
Gatke says: — "I remember one occasion, in May, 1845 '^^ 1846, when there
were some sixty of the most beautiful male birds of this species, all picked
specimens, lying on a large flat dish in my cellar ; and I might easily have
doubled that number had I accepted all that were offered me on the same
day. Aeuckens obtained nearly as many, all these birds having been caught
by boys, in nets."
There is therefore not the least reason why this bird should not be as
readily procurable, and when reconciled to captivity, make as delightful an
aviary pet, as the universally beloved Pekin Nightingale fLiothrix luteusj : it
ought to be quite as cheaply obtainable ; possibly the White-spotted Bluethroat
may be purchasable from the Dutch dealers, but I never saw a specimen of
a Bluethroat exposed in the shop of any bird-dealer, either in England or on
Ihe Continent. Dr. Gunther, the late keeper of the Zoological Department in
the Natural History Museum, informs me that he has had several Bluethroats,
but he found them very delicate and diificult to keep alive : this may perhaps
be the reason for the rarity of this species in the market.
* This statement has since been called in question by scientific Ornithologists.
t An example of the Dutch race was exhibited at the Crjstal Palace in Febniarj- 1896 : it was somewhat
knocked about ; possibly freshly imported.
r
52 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
The Bluethroat is sometimes obtainable, for I know of two aviculturists
who have kept it ; Mr. Abrahams says that it has never come into his hands,
but Mr. Dresser informs me that he has seen it offered for sale in the market
of St. Petersburg.
Family— TURDID^. , Subfamily— TURDIN^.
The Redbreast.
Erithacus riibccula, LiNN.
THE Robin breeds throughout Europe northwards to the Arctic circle, east-
wards across Russia to the Ural Mountains, southwards to the south of
Spain, the west of Northern Africa, the Canaries, Madeira and the Azores. In
autumn it migrates southwards to Southern Europe, the Sahara, Egypt, Palestine,
Asia Minor, N.W. Turkestan and Persia. In Great Britain it is generally dis-
tributed ; it has not however, hitherto, been known to breed in the Shetlands.
Although called Redbreast the breast is rather tawny sienna than red. The
adult male has the upper parts olivaceous brown, slightly more ruddy on the
crown; outer wing-coverts with the tip of the outer web buff; primaries dark
ashy grey, with brownish outer webs, secondaries narrowly tipped with whitish ;
a frontal band, the lores, ear-coverts, chin, throat, and breast tawny sienna, or
orange chestnut ; belly pure white ; flanks and under tail-coverts sandy brownish
shading off into huffish white ; tail below ashy : bill black, feet brown, iris almost
black.
The female has the frontal band, lores, and chin more smoky, and the
throat of a duller, more sand}^ hue excepting at the sides ; the crown of the
head and the bill are also broader than in the male.
Nestlings have all the small feathers of the upper and under surfaces
spotted in the centre with buff and tipped with blackish ; but birds of the year
differ but little from their parents excepting that their colours are a little paler.
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53
The habits of this most confiding and familiar little favourite are pretty-
generally known to bird lovers ; it is fond of haunting the homes of mankind,
but more especially in the winter-time, when it thereby has a chance of
appeasing the pangs of hunger ; but many^ pairs remain to breed in holes
and corners of garden, orchard or outhouse, and therefore are occasionally seen
about one's premises almost throvighout the year. It would appear that at
the pairing season each male Robin claims, and defends against all intruders of
his own species, an area sufficiently large to provide food for his expected family,
and many are the battles which are fought, even to the death, in the early spring.
In the winter if you care to try the experiment of putting out a trap
baited with a lively mealworm, you may catch Robin after Robin without
difficulty ; but, in the spring, should you have a nest in your garden, you
will see one pair only ; should a stranger appear, he is chased and attacked
immediately ; woe be to him if he be the weaker bird, for even his death
will not appease the rage of his opponent ; mutilation alone being satisfactory
to his vengeful eye.
The only time at which we miss the Redbreast about our homes is during
the moulting season ; for then it retires to the seclusion of the woods and
coverts of the country to change its clothing ; but no sooner has it donned
its bright winter dress than it is with us again. At this season when we
gladly welcome the reappearance of our trustful little friend, and delight, when
gardening, to watch it impudently hopping about within a foot of our spade,
or even for the nonce alighting on it to peep into the earth we have just
turned over,* the Latin races are capturing this charming bird in myriads and
slaughtering them for food.
Excepting when on migration the Robin rarely flies high or for great
distances. The flight itself is widely undulatory ; the moment it alights and
every half minute or so subsequently if it should have settled on a branch,
it goes through a spasmodic little stooping action accompanied by a lowering
of the head, flip of the wings and an upward jerk of the tail : on the earth
it proceeds by long hops, with a pause and the characteristic epileptic stoop
after every few hops.
The building site of this bird varies almost endlessly, fany hollow into
•When digging one day in my garden a Robin hopped between my feet alighting on the top of mj' spade,
from which, a moment before, I had removed my foot, and there it sat peeping into the hole and then glancing
sideways up in mj' face as if asking me to continue to turn over the earth; a feat which I could not accom-
plish without disturbing the bird.
t Mr. Frohawk writes that a pair of Robins built on the bend of a gutter pipe to his house in 1894 and
1895, at a height of 20 feet from the ground : the pipe was slightly concealed by a few entangled sprays of
Ampelopsis Veitchii : the situation was identical each year.
54 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
which it can stuff its nest seems to be welcome ; if built near the habitation
of man, it may be placed in a corner of an outhouse, or a ledge in a dust-
bin, in a watering-pot hanging on a nail, a quart pot hanging on a fence,
a flower pot in a shed, in ivy on the house wall, in creepers on a fence,
in the side of a bean-stack or pile of brush-wood : in all which situations I
have found it ; in the country an old teapot flung into a plantation may be
chosen, or a slight depression in the ground below a tree or ivy-covered
stump, a cranny in a rock or a deserted chalk- or sand-pit, or a hole in a
grassy bank : but the Robin's favourite nesting-site is at the side of a wide
public road bounded on either hand by a wood, from which a sloping
irregular bank partly covered with ivy and bramble descends to the thorough-
fare : during the frosts of winter or during heavy rains a large flint or
a fragment of rock is dislodged and rolls into the road leaving a hollow
partly overhung by ivy or fern : such a site is tolerably certain to be occupied
the following spring, and each succeeding year, by a pair of Redbreasts.
I believe that of the many Robins which nest in our gardens and houses,
not one pair in twenty has the pleasure of seeing its young leave the nest ;
nearly the whole of them fall victims to cats. As to the cat not eating Robins,
that I have proved to be the wildest fiction; a mere rustic legend, no more
true to fact than the reputed poisonous qualities of the slow-worm and newt.
The nest of this bird, when placed in holes, is a loosely built structure,
but is more compactly formed when situated in ivy or creepers ; the outer
walls are made of fine roots, bast, or coarse dry grass, bents, and sometimes
a few dead oak leaves intertwined with hair and moss ; the cup is neatly lined
with fine grasses, fibre and hair : when built in holes moss is largely used
and when placed in ivy the front wall is largely covered with dead oak leaves,
giving it somewhat the appearance of a Nightingale's nest.
The eggs vary in number from four to seven, but there are rarely less
than five or more than six ; in colour they are usually fleshy white, more or
less mottled and spotted with sienna-reddish and red-brown ; sometimes the
spotting is weak, and forms a mere rusty nebula at the larger end; occasionally
the eggs are pure white.
The note of anxiety is a sharp tick, tick-a-tck, tek, tek ; but when the
young are out of the nest it is sometimes varied by a veritable croak,
reminding one of the Nightingale ; a thin plaintive piercing note, a kind of
tscet (the same as the distress note) is iisually repeated at intervals for a short
time before the bird sings. The song itself is sweet and clear but somewhat
plaintive : Henry Stevenson, in his " Birds of Norfolk " thus poetically describes
The Redbreast. 55
it : — " Clear and sharp it sounds in the fresh morning air, whilst still the
hoar frost hangs upon the trees, or glitters on the threads of endless gossamer.
The sportsman hears it by the covert side as at midday he rests awhile, and
seeks refreshment after all his toils; and later still, as he "homeward plods
his wear}- wa}^" that simple note, in some mysterious manner, awakens
recollections of the past, when the same sport was shared with dear and
absent friends. Again, in the months of September and October, as the day
declines and the evening " draws in," how we listen to him in our gardens
and shrubberies now chattering his little mandibles as he jerks up and down
on some projecting branch, now singing sweetly, or at short intervals waiting
for, and answering some neighbouring songster."
It has been said that the Robin sings best in the autumn and winter,
but this is not the case ; the song is best heard when Nature is asleep, yet
is quite as charming in the spring, when he carols to his mate as she sits
upon her dappled eggs ; yet he often wanders far away at this period and
she, disconsolate and hungry, calls to him with her far-reaching melancholy
tseet, until he reappears and brings some appetizing morsel to reward her patient
toil : for it must not be supposed that Finches alone feed their hens upon the
nest, many other birds do the same and often have I seen the Robin do so.*
The food of the Robin is very varied ; small worms, spiders, centipedes,
insects and their larvae forming its staple diet during the open months, but
it by no means despises currants and cherries, and during the winter it largely
subsists upon berries, probably seeds of weeds, and all kinds of household
refuse picked up in the farmyard, or purposely thrown out for him by those
who love to see a little bright life about their homes during the desolate
months of the year.
As a cage-bird the Redbreast is a great favourite, but it is almost a sin
to confine this trusting little fellow, and it is somewhat risky to turn him
out into an aviary ; for, although at various times I have kept Robins which
never molested other birds, individuals have been known to prove dangerous
companions to less active species. A friend of mine, who turned loose a
Robin into his aviary, lost a Bullfinch, Goldfinch, and Linnet in a single night,
the Redbreasted little ruffian having drilled a neat hole into the skull of each
of them.
My first experience of Robins in captivity was in the winter of 1886-7,
• The American Blue-bird is most attentive in this respect, constantly and most unselfishly giviug every
insect to his wife, from the time of courtship until the young are hatched. The ordinary call-note of our
Robin is a short sharp whistled note.
56 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
when I caught twelve and selected the three brightest for pets, letting the
remainder fly. As usual, these birds readily become quite tame, taking worms,
insects, &c. from my fingers; indeed one of them did so on the third day
after its capture. It soon learned to know me so well that it would follow
me from one end of its flight- cage to the other. I used to sit down and
watch this bird and I made a note of the number of beats of the wing
which were required to take it from one end of its little aviary to the other ;
this I could only do accurately by ear, but the number hardly ever varied :
I then calculated that, flying in the same manner, the Robin would have to
flap its wings 9240 times to cover a mile. Two of these Robins died in the
spring, one after eight, and the other after nine months confinement ; the
third I gave away to a friend.
In September, 1887, I again caged two Robins, the first of which became
perfectly tame in about a week and would come at my call to take mealworms
or earthworms from my fingers ; both died of a pulmonary' complaint in the
spring of 1889, I having turned them into an unheated aviary: it thus
became clear that after eighteen months of comparative warmth, the Robin is
unfit to cope with the severity of an English winter.
Since then I have had several of these charming little songsters, but I
do not think I shall ever keep another ; I always feel that a bird which will
of its own free will enter your house and remain for weeks (if you permit
it) a willing captive, should not be " cribbed, cabined or confined." One
autumn, after allowing a Robin to take possession of a greenhouse for a
week, I was finally obliged to drive him out ; on account, not only of the
disfigurement of my plants, but of his propensity to dig for worms in the
flower-pots.
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Nightingale.
The Nightingale.
57
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— TURDIN^.
The Nightingale.
Daulias luscinia, LlNN.
HOWARD SAUNDERS gives the following as the geographical distri-
bution of this species : — " On the Continent, Northern Germany appears
to be the highest authenticated latitude for our Nightingale ; south of which,
except where systematically molested by bird-catchers, it is generally distributed
throughout Central Europe. In such southern countries as Portugal, Spain,
Italy, Greece and Turkey, it is very abundant in suitable localities ; breeding
also in North Africa, Palestine and Asia Minor. Its north-eastern limit in
Europe appears to be the valley of the Vistula; and in Russia it is confined
to the southern provinces."
The Nightingale visits Great Britain early in April but does not reach the
more northern counties until later, it leaves us again in August and September;
it has not been known to occur in Ireland, its occurrence in Scotland is doubtful
and in East Devon, Shropshire and South Yorkshire it is rare ; its distribution is
somewhat local, but in the woods of some of the southern counties it is very
abundant.
The colouring of this species above is russet-brown, the tail-coverts and
tail being chestnut reddish. Below it is pale buff, greyish on the breast and
flanks and brownish on the axillaries ; under tail-coverts buff, deeper than on
the centre of throat and abdomen. Bill brown above, pale horn-colour below ;
feet brown ; iris hazel.
The female has a broader crown and bill than the male, but resembles it
in colouring. Nestlings are darker and have most of the feathers above spotted
with golden-brown ; below they are barred with greyish-brown.
The Nightingale is a bird of the woods, its favourite haunts are copses,
plantations, shrubberies and all timbered land where trees rise amongst dense and
tangled undergrowth ; but open forest is not suited to its somewhat timid and
skulking nature. As one wanders on the outskirts of some of the almost
58 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
impenetrable Kentish woods, it is no unusual thing to see this russet coloured
songster dart out from the covert, and after an irregular flight of a few yards
disappear again amid the thick foliage.
In its actions the Nightingale resembles the Robin, but it has none of the
impudent confidence of that bird ; and, though very pugnacious, it is no match
for the Redbreasted bird; of which, indeed, I proved that it stands greatljMU awe : —
On one occasion I turned a Nightingale loose in an aviary in which a Robin was
flying about and, no sooner did they catch sight of one another, than Bob flew
straight for Philomel, who crouched on the grovmd in such abject terror, that I
quickly snatched him up to save his life. (It was a male Philomel !) In a state
of nature, when scared, the Nightingale always seeks concealment in some tangled
cover of bramble, hawthorn, scrambling hone^^suckle or shady evergreen, uttering
the while its harsh croak of alarm, and clicking together its mandibles after the
fashion of other insectivorous birds. On the rare occasions when one catches a
glimpse of it, in some small clearing in wood or shrubbery, seeking for small
worms, beetles, or spiders, its behaviour is precisely that of the Robin, the manner
in which it jumps and jerks at the worm, and having gulped it down, stands for
a moment with head erect and tail slightly raised ; then bobs, flicks its wings
and throws up its tail, is in every respect a perfect facsimile of the Redbreast's
actions. Like most of the Thrush-tribe the Nightingale turns over dead leaves
most industriously in the search for concealed insects.
Such is my experience of this bird as seen in the Kentish woods ; but Henry
Stevenson, speaking of it in Norfolk says : — " Though frequenting the thick
cover of our groves and shrubberies, the Nightingale is by no means a shy bird,
at least on its first arrival, but sings fearlessh- throughout the da}^ in the most
exposed situations. In my own garden, bordered on two sides b}' public roads, I
have known one sing at intervals throughout the day, on the yet leafless branches
of an almond tree, perfectly indifferent to the voices and footsteps of the passers
by ; and on the ist May, 1864, a most exquisite songster stationed himself on a
small tree, in Mount Pleasant lane, close to the footpath, where groups of Sunday
walkers, both morning and afternoon, stopped to listen to its ' sweet descants,'
and probably for the first time in their lives saw, as well as heard, a Nightingale."
This last sentence chimes in exactly with my belief. It is not often easy to
discover the author of sweet Philomel's discourses ; one needs to look long
and carefully ; and perchance, at length, one finds that the singer which one
has been seeking for in the undergrowth, is perched among the smaller
branches of some lofty elm ; not that it always seeks so high a seat ; for,
man}' a time, on a hot spring morning I have seen it in full song in a
The Nightingale. 59
plantation of birch trees grown for hop-poles, and among the briars and rank
vegetation at their roots I have often sought and sometimes found its nest.
The song of the Nightingale surpasses in melody and charm that of any
other bird ; it commences usually with a long-drawn plaintive pinvee, phwee, phwee,
phwee, repeated from four to six times in succession, and followed by a rapid
water-bubble chooka, cJiooka, chooka, chooka, cliooka, chookee, and then perhaps a
series of clear notes commencing tooey, too, too, too, tooti, more and more rapidly
uttered and increasing in power ; sometimes the song commences with this
tooey, yet more often with the complaining note : but, without the bird singing
at one's side, it is impossible to remember, much less to do justice to, this
brilliant musician ; once heard, it can never be mistaken for anything else ;
the Blackcap sometimes strives to copy the melody, and does it fairly well ;
but he sings too loud, without the softness of sweet Philomel. On one
occasion when out with Mr. Frohawk at twilight, on the skirt of a Kentish
wood we heard a Song- Thrush and a Blackbird trying to outdo a Nightin-
gale: it was all in vain, all three birds were perfect masters of their art;
the Thrush, by introducing part of the song of the Nightingale, much im-
proved his own natural performance ; but the Blackbird scorned to copy, he
swung out his full flowing phrases in grand style, and when he knew him-
self beaten, in a royal rage he charged the tree in which the little russet
songster sat, and drove it from its retreat ; but the Nightingale, nothing
daunted, perched on a branch of another tree some fifty feet away, and then
the concert recommenced : never before or since have I heard any of these
three species sing so superbl3\
The nest of the Nightingale is usually placed in a hole in the ground,
less frequently in the forking base of a pollard partly overhung b}' rank
grass and fern-fronds, rarely in bramble or hawthorn, a foot or more above
the earth, but in such unusual positions I have only twice found it, its usual
site is in a depression at the foot of a tree, pollard, or bramble-bush well
concealed by ferns, grasses or other short undergrowth. On several occasions,
however, I have found it fully exposed to the sky, among the drifted oak-
leaves in a small clearing close to some blind keeper's path : when thus
situated, it appears to the casual pedestrian to be merely a round hole among
the dead leaves ; but, to the experienced birdsnester, it is fully revealed at
a glance. Curiously enough the rustics who, in a desultory fashion, have
plundered and destro3'ed nests from their babyhood upwards, invariably over-
look all nests which are merely protected by their environment in this fashion,
and express the greatest wonder that a townsman should instantl}' recognize
^ British Birds with their Nests and Eggs.
as a nest that which they would have passed as a hole in the ground, or
a bunch of leaves.
The structure itself is loosely put together, the cup very deep ; the outer
walls composed of coarse dry flattened bents, rushes, or even fine flags, lined
with finer bents, root-fibre, and sometimes a little horsehair ; the whole of the
outer wall is covered and concealed by dead oak-leaves. The eggs, which
number from four to six, are brownish olive ; rarely, with a red-brown zone
round the broader extremity. Still more rarely, they are bluish green, mottled
with reddish brown, and somewhat resemble eggs of the Bluethroat : but eggs
of this type "I have never found, and those with the red-brown zone only
twice ; the colouring is doubtless protective, for the typical eggs look at
first glance much like oval pebbles at the bottom of a small hole in the
earth.
The call-note is said to be wate, wate, cur-cur; but this always appeared
to me to be a note of caution or anger ; the call to the female is either a
piercing thin key-whistle like that of the Blackbird and Robin, to which she
replies in the same manner, or a soothing tooey to which she does not reply,
at least I never heard her ; but perhaps the fact that a human being was in
dangerous proximity to her nest, may have made her cautious : the alarm
note is a low guttural sort of croak. The song of the Nightingale com-
mences soon after his arrival on our coasts and continues until the young
are hatched, which is usually in June, after this it is only heard in the
evening after the arduous duty of providing for its family is completed for
the day.
As the young birds hear but little of the song which is their greatest
gift, during the rearing season, it has been suggested that they may learn it
while still in the ^<g^ ; but this idea seems to me far fetched, and most
improbable ; at best the unborn chick could barely be capable of appreciating
sound for a day or two before hatching : but, what seems to me to clinch
the matter, is the fact that, if taken from the nest when eight days old
and hand-reared. Nightingales in confinement do not sing a note ; or such
is my experience. I think it far more likely that the song is partly
learnt when the father is at evensong and most other voices are hushed, for
then the Nightingale's melody sounds most impressive ; probably the finishing
lessons are given in Africa, during our winter months.
It has been said that Nightingales do not bear confinement well, yet I have
seen individuals which have lived for years in quite small cages ; I remember one
which hung against the wall of a house exactly opposite our hotel bedroom
The Nightingale. 6t
window at Baden-Baden, about the j^ear 1867; we were told that it had been
caged for several years, and it sang grandly when we heard it. Many years later
I saw one at an inn, at Selling in Kent, which had been caged for about eight
years and still sang well. Every year many are exhibited at bird-shows, the
same specimens being shown in successive years. I have also known an instance
of this species breeding and rearing young in an aviary.
The spring-caught Nightingales are those which are sold for songsters, those
obtained on their autumn migration are said rarely to live ; I have, unhappily,
never had a captured Nightingale. In June, 1887, I secured a nest of five birds
nine days old, and (following the usual most misleading instructions) I fed them,
amongst other things, on finely chopped raw-meat ; consequently they all suffered
from violent purging, which carried off" the two strongest. Guessing that the
meat was the cause of this disaster, I at once changed their diet, and successfully
brought up the three others upon a mixture of four parts pounded dog-biscuit, four
parts oat flour, two parts pea-meal, two parts yolk of egg, and one part ants'
cocoons, the whole well mingled with water into a moist paste. When about six
weeks old, they began to quarrel about trifles, and pull out one another's feathers ;
therefore early in August, I placed them in three separate sections of a large
aviary-cage with sliding wire divisions, and here they soon recovered their plumage.
They were very tame, but, like most birds, objected to being handled ; althoiigh
this was frequently necessary, as they used to get their feet clogged with dirt,
which they never attempted to remove for themselves. I now changed their diet
again ; that upon which I had reared them proving too fattening, now that they
were full-grown ; I knocked off" three parts of the oat-flour and one of the pea-
meal, substituting finely crumbled dry bread. Curiously enough these Nightingales
would persist in sitting in the direct rays of the sun, the result of which was
that two of them got heat-apoplexy and lost all interest in everything, appearing
as if stuffed, neither moving nor eating. I gave them both a warm bath, after
which one of them recovered, but the other died miserably about the end of
August. It was said to have warbled a little before its attack, but I doubt it
myself.
My two remaining Nightingales became wonderfully confiding, and would
come and pick caterpillars or mealworms out of the palm of my hand, but
neither ever sang a note ; one died from a recurrence of sunstroke in Aiigust,
1888, and the other (a fine male bird) went off in a decline at the end of the
same year. As pets, hand-reared Nightingales are neither so pretty, nor so
charming, as Robins; their outline is pleasing, and their full intelligent eyes give
them an alert appearance not belied by their sprightly movements; but one wants
Vol. I. M
6a British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
something more than a russet brown bird which onl}^ croaks or tooeys; a Nightin-
gale which sings is a joy for ever, but a silent Nightingale is a fraud.
There are very few birds which sing their natural song when hand-reared,
and the Nightingale is not one of them : whether the Robin is, I do not know ;
I tried to rear a nest of these once, but foolishl}' gave them some chopped raw
meat, which killed the entire half dozen in one day. The best mixture for
successfull}' rearing all soft-food birds is as follows : — Four parts ants' cocoons,
three parts yolk of ^^^, one part dry bread-crumbs ; the whole mixed veiy^ moist
at first, but given dryer as the birds get older : the j'oung of Butcher-birds,
Crows, &c., should have raw meat also, because flesh is to them a natural article
of food.
This species concludes the Thrush-like birds. {Turdina;).
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— S YL VIINAi.
The Whitethroat.
Sylvia cinerea, Bechst.
BREEDS abundantly in Scandinavia and Western Russia as far north as lat.
65°, and in the Ural Mountains up to lat. 60°, southwards throughout
Europe to the Mediterranean. It winters in the Canaries and Northern Africa,
passing through N.E. Africa on migration and extending its wanderings down
the west coast to Damaraland. Eastwards it occurs in Asia Minor, where it is
abimdant in the nesting-season, in Palestine where it is partly resident, in Persia,
Turkestan, and south-west Siberia.
In Great Britain it is very common and generally distributed, being most
rare in the extreme north of Scotland, and unrecorded from the Outer Hebrides.
The adult male in breeding plumage has the head, neck and upper tail-
<
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X
H
UJ
H
^
I
The Whitethroat. 63
coverts smoky grey, the remainder of the upper parts greyish brown, deepest on
wings and tail, the wing-coverts and innermost secondaries broadly margined with
rufous ; the outer tail-feathers paler than the remainder, broadly bordered and
tipped with white. Under surface white, shaded on the breast with vinous-buff
and on the flanks with buff; under wing-coverts and axillaries smoky grey: bill
dark brown, the lower mandible paler, feet pale brown, iris hazel. The female
differs in the absence of the grey head and upper tail-coverts, and vinous breast.
After its autumn moult the male resembles the female. Young birds are more
rufous brown.
The Whitethroat reaches us about the second week in April, though in mild
seasons I have met with it earlier ; it takes its departure early in September. It
is essentially a bird of the thicket, hedgerow, shrubbery or garden : in open spots
overrun with blackberry, honeysuckle, stunted hawthorn, long rank grass and
nettles you are almost certain to hear its cheerful little song or its harsh alarm
note. Though rarely met with in dense woods, it abounds in those narrow strips
of wood known in Kent by the names of shaws and shaves; yet in lanes, and
little frequented country roads where the hedges are untrimmed, and fringed at
the bottoms with nettle and goose-grass, the Whitethroat is most in evidence ;
here, among the nettle heads, the flimsy nest is often suspended ; not that the
nest is always flimsy, for I have taken examples almost as stoutly built as that
of a Sedge Warbler ; nor is the nest always situated in so apparently perilous a
position as a bunch of nettles, for I have often taken it from the top of a clipped
hawthorn hedge partly overgrown with ivy ; but it is most frequently found low
down in bramble or dense but loose vegetation and more often than not near the
foot of a thick hawthorn hedge.
The nest is usually lightly constructed of dried stalks of plants and grasses
with here and there knot's of spider's silk or sheep's wool ; the lining is composed
of fine bents and horsehair : it is generally very deep. Of ten nests in my
collection, obtained during two consecutive years, two are interesting ; one on
account of its unusual size, the diameter of the interior of the cavity measuring
nearly three inches, and thickly lined with black hair ; the other has the walls
rather thickly edged with sheep's wool intertwined with the grasses.
The eggs, which usually number from four to five, rarely six, vary a good
deal in ground-tint and in marking ; the best known type is greenish, indistinctly
mottled with greyish olive, the larger end zoned with spots and specks of slate-
grey and brown ; another not uncommon variety resembles the &gg of the Garden
Warbler excepting for a belt of scattered slate-grey spots towards the larger end,
a third variety is stone grey with slightly darker mottling and looks almost like
64 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
a diminutive egg of the Pied Wagtail : a fourth, somewhat larger, is similarlj'
coloured, but spotted and splashed as if with ink ; then there is a dark mottled
greyish form, almost like a small egg of the Titlark ; a pale ruddy variety with
greyish mottling, reminding one of the Spotted Fl3^catcher's egg, and a greenish
white egg with scattered brown mottling speckled with blackish, and vaguelj^
resembling some eggs of Passer; rarely its eggs are almost like enlarged editions
of those of the Lesser Whitethroat, but with the surface between the blackish
markings splashed and speckled with olive brown. The abo^•e are a few of the
forms taken by myself, and it would not be difficult to add to the list, indeed an
assiduous collector never seems to come to the end of variation in this egg,
either in size, form, ground-tint, or pattern : I have one almost like that of the
Dartford Warbler, but nearly spherical ; others which, had I not taken them my-
self, I should have declared to be large eggs of the Sedge Warbler laid by an
old bird, 3^et I took them from a most t3^pical flimsy Whitethroat's nest, built in
nettles : they are almost large enough for eggs of the Garden Warbler. Many
even of the best collections give a very poor idea of the modifications to which
this bird's eggs are liable, and the published descriptions seem, so far as I have
been able to judge, to have been copied from one ornithological work into another,
most authors speaking of specimens being pale buff", or huffish white, spotted with
yellowish brown and with violet- grey shell-markings : it would be rash to assert
that such eggs never existed, but I must confess that I never saw anything
approaching this variety among the hundreds which I have examined.
This species is very largely insectivorous and its young are reared solely
upon this diet, caterpillars, spiders, and crane-flies being its favourite articles of
food ; in the early fruit season it also robs the raspberry' canes and currant-bushes,
and is not averse to elder- and blackberries ; early in August it is said also to eat
the unripe milky com.
The "Nettle-creeper," or "Jolly Whitethroat" as the rustics call this bird,
has a short but clear and melodious song, and may frequently be heard in the
country lanes singing from the top of a hedge or one of the lower branches of a
tree ; sometimes you may see him from simple exuberance of joy soaring upwards
after the manner of a Pipit and presently flinging himself downwards to the
hedgerow ; if you approach to watch him more closely he slips over to the other
side of the hedge, rising and falling just ahead of you until convinced of
your pursuit, when he wheels round and returns perhaps to the point from which
he started ; near to which, perchance, his nest ma}^ be concealed. The call-note is
a clear phwcet-plnvcct-plnveet , but its alarm-note is a harsh hissing sound.
The Whitethroat is well-known as a cage-bird and is not especially delicate,
Lesser Whitethroat.
The Lesser Whitethroat. 65
if supplied with plenty of insect food ; but, if this cannot be provided, he is un-
able to stand an English winter in an unheated aviary, and without question an
aviarj% not a cage, is the only confinement to which any Warbler ought to be
subjected : doubtless, like all these birds, the Whitethroat does in time become
reconciled to the close imprisonment of a cage ; but no aviculturist, unless a great
worshipper of bird-shows, would take much pleasure in watching its cramped
movements in such an enclosure.
The Whitethroat will sing freely in an aviary, but whether it ever does so in
a cage I cannot say ; a male captured on its arrival in this country, probably
would do so, in time ; bvit a hand-reared bird would be unlikely to give this
satisfaction to its owner. It is therefore almost certain that caged Whitethroats
are rarely kept excepting for the show-bench ; they would hardl}^ be selected for
their brilliant plumage, and their song would certainly be heard to the greatest
advantage, to say the least of it, in an aviar5^ To keep so restless and sprightly
a bird as the Whitethroat in close confinement, merely for the sake of the slight
profit which it may bring to its owner in the way of prizes, is not only a cruelty,
but a meanness, of which no real bird-lover, who took the trouble to reflect
upon it, could well be guilty.
Family— TURDID^. Stibfamily—SYL VIINAL.
The Lesser Whitethroat.
Sylvia curritca, Linn.
THE European race of this species ranges northwards almost to the limit
of forest-growth ; southwards it breeds throughout nearly the whole of
temperate Europe, to Southern Europe it is chiefly a summer visitor, but
Howard Saunders states that "a few pass the winter to the east of Malaga."
66
British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Its usual winter quarters are Northern and Central Africa, Arabia, Palestine,
where it is also said to breed, and Persia.
In Great Britain its distribution is decidedly local, being especially so on
the east and west coasts and in Scotland, whilst in Ireland it is not known
to occur.
The adult male has the crown smoky grey, the nape, back and upper
tail-coverts brownish slate-grey, the wings greyish brown with paler margins
to the innermost secondaries, the tail-feathers dark brown excepting the outer
ones, which are greyer and have white outer webs ; lores and ear- coverts
dark brown. Under surface white, slightly tinged with yellowish brown on
the breast and flanks ; bill dark slate- grey inclining to black, the under
mandible with pale base : feet slate-grey ; iris pale brown. The female is
slightly smaller and duller- coloured than the male. Young birds are browner,
with better defined pale margins to the wing-feathers ; bill and feet paler ;
iris hazel.
The Lesser Whitethroat reaches us late in April or early in May and
usually leaves us again late in September, but stragglers remain nearly a
month later, and Mr. Swaysland even obtained an example at Brighton in
November.
This species is more skulking in its habits than its larger relative, it
frequents the margins of dense woods, copses, plantations, shrubberies, rural
uncultivated hedges, especially those which border little frequented lanes and
thickly planted gardens. When disturbed it either slips away into the dense
scrub or flies up into the branches of some lofty tree where it hops restlessly
from twig to twig uttering an excitable defiant note tsee, tsee, tsee, repeated
rapidly nine or ten times : if disturbed from its nest, however, its note is
more like kek, kek, kek : the song is a rapid repetition of one whistled note ;
it has been called a trill, biit is too staccato to answer that description ; a
few lower notes are sometimes added, but even these have a monotonous
character.
The nest is constructed at any time between April and June, but I have
found more in May than in either of the other months ; it varies considerably
in its height from the ground, being sometimes placed among the upper twigs
of a tall hawthorn hedge, sometimes in brambles only a foot or two above
the earth ; it is also occasionally found in furze-bvishes ; but I took most of
my nests either from hedges on the outskirts of woods, or in country lanes,
the height from the ground being about four feet. Mr. Frohawk tells me
that the Lesser Whitethroat, when building in shrubberies, very frequently
The Lesser Whitethroat. 67
selects the snow-berty as a site for its nest : he also reminds me of the
frequency with which those found by us at various times contained imperfect
clutches ; a full clutch being the exception, and two to three eggs the rule.
Although the bird itself is very shy, I have not observed that it makes any
special effort to conceal its nest, and many a time when I have found it to
contain only one egg, and have left it in the hope of subsequently securing
it with a full clutch, I have found it torn out by some village clown.
To take one egg from the nest of the Lesser Whitethroat is sufiEcient to
ensure its desertion : even if a similarly coloured small marble is substituted,
the only result is that the bird ejects the marble and then lets the empty
nest alone : I never knew her to lay a second egg after the first had been
abstracted. Like the Wren, this little bird will run no risks ; if you interfere
with her domestic arrangements, she will, for the time, give up hoixsekeeping.
The structure of the nest is much firmer, and, to my mind, neater than
that of the Common Whitethroat ; a pretty little cup formed of stout bents
and rootlets firmly interlaced with the twigs among which it is fixed and
interwoven here and there with a little fine wool and spiders' cocoons ; it is
lined with fine bents, root fibre and a little horsehair. The eggs vary in
number from four to five : when less than four are incubated, the nest is
probably a second one and hurriedly constructed, the first having been tampered
with. In colouring, the eggs varj^ much less than those of its larger relative ;
indeed the difference in ground-colour, is slight, varying from white to cream-
colour, the markings diffused olive-brown, with underlying silver-grey or pale slate
spots and overlying dots and lines of blackish brown : some specimens have the
spots large and boldly defined, especially towards the rounded extremity where
they frequently form an irregular zone ; sometimes the end of the egg enclosed
by this zone is suffused with dirty buff; at other times the spots, though
similarly disposed are small and scattered ; and, lastly, in some clutches the
spots are rather small and sprinkled over the entire surface.
Although I have found few birds so easily put off the nest before the
completion of the clutch, no sooner has the hen commenced incubation than
she becomes a very close sitter, only leaving her eggs at the last moment,
when satisfied that her death-like inaction has failed to protect them from the
intruder ; even then she does not move far away, but fidgets about in the
scrub, scolding ; in this pastime she is frequently accompanied by the male
bird which is usually within earshot, and promptly appears on the scene to
investigate the cause of his consort's ill temper.
The food of the Lesser Whitethroat consists of small insects and their
68 British Birds, with their Nestsand Eggs.
larvae, spiders, soft berries and small fruits, more particularly currants and
cherries. Its flight is undulating. Mr. Blyth (Field Naturalist, Vol. I. p. 306)
says of the " babillard or Lesser White throat " : — "He seems — to be always in
such high spirits as not to know how to contain himself, taking frequently
a long circuitous flight from tree to tree, and back again a dozen times,
seemingly for no other purpose than mere exercise ; but he never mounts
singing into the air like the Whitethroat."
Gatke speaking of it in Heligoland, says that " Only solitary examples
of this pretty little songster are met with on this island; it is the earliest
arrival among its nearer relatives during the spring migration, almost always
making its appearance as early as the first days of April, even if the weather
is still raw, and completes its migration by the middle of May. In the
autumn, when it occurs still more sparingly, it may be seen from the latter
half of September till towards the end of October, and at times also some-
what later."
As a cage-bird the Lesser Whitethroat is not especially interesting;
nevertheless, if its song is not particularly attractive, I agree with Herr
Mathias Rausch that it has the merit of zeal (Vide ' Gefiederte Welt' 1891,
p. 342) "inasmuch as, even in confinement, it sings the whole day long."
However, I have not personally had the pleasure of keeping a fully adult
male of this little warbler.
In June, 1887, I came across a nest of Lesser Whitethroats, evidently
only about three days old ; and, so anxious was I to discover what they
would be like in captivity, that I took the nest and attempted the difficult
task of rearing them. With such young birds it was not only necessary to
cover them up carefully with warm flannel every evening, after giving them
their last meal ; but I had to turn out of bed at sunrise to give them their
first breakfast ; no pleasant task at midsummer ! I persevered, however, feeding
them regularly on moistened ' Abrahams' Food ' every hour, until they were
old enough to require nourishment less frequently. Unhappily (as is often the
case, even with the greatest care) they got very dirty : a flattened and pointed
stick is a poor substitute for the parents' bill. In consequence of the matting
of their feathers, the two weakest died, probably from chill ; the two remaining
birds were reared ; but, though unnaturally fat, from lack of proper exercise,
they were incessantly clamouring for food ; yet they seemed healthy enough.
About the third week of July, in the act of stretching forward to snatch
some food which I ofiered, they fell dead from apoplexy : the moral of which
is — do not overfeed youngsters because they cry.
Blackcap.
The Orphean Warbler. The Blackcap. 69
Family— TUKDIDAi. Subfamily— SYLVIIN.-Jl.
The Orphean Warbler.
Sylvia orphca, Temm.
THE existence of this species in Great Britain rests upon the authority
of a female said by a bird-stuffer, Graham, of York, to have been shot
near Wetherby, and upon a young bird caught in Middlesex, kept in captivity
for nearly six months and then identified by the late Mr. B. Blyth. Nests
and eggs supposed to belong to this species have also been taken.
In spite of these facts, it seems to me that there is, at present, not
sufficient evidence to justify the admission of the Orphean Warbler into the
British list. As Mr. Seebohm remarks : — " Under the most favourable circum-
stances, even supposing no error to have crept into the history or identification
of any of these occurrences, the Orphean Warbler can only be looked upon
as a very rare and accidental straggler to ovir islands.
Family— TURDID.F.. Subfamily— S YL VIlNyK.
The Blackcap.
Sylvia atricapilla, L,INN.
■¥
THIS delightful songster is generally distributed throughout Europe,
breeding in every country from Scandinavia below 66° N. lat., and
extending its range southwards to North Africa, south-eastwards to Asia Minor
and Palestine, and also through the Caucasus to Western Persia. In the
Vol. 1. N
I
7° British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Mediterranean basin it has been obtained at all seasons. Its winter range is
supposed to extend westward to Senegal and Gambia, and eastward to Nubia
and Abyssinia; in the Cape Verd Islands, Madeira, the Canaries and Azores
it is apparently resident.
In Great Britain this species is somewhat local, but pretty generally
distributed.
The general colouring of the upper parts of the Blackcap in breeding
plumage is smoky grey, the upper part of the head jet-black ; the edges of
the wing and tail feathers brownish ; under parts ash-grey, paler on the chin,
the centre of abdomen, axillaries and under wing-coverts white ; bill dark horn
brown, feet leaden grey, iris hazel. The female chiefly differs from the male
in its rufous brown cap and generall}^ somewhat browner colouring. The
3'Oung male in its first plumage resembles the female, but acquires the black
cap in the autumn without a moult. Both sexes of the adult birds are said
to become somewhat browner after their autumn moult, but I have proved
that the male retains its black cap throughout the year, a fact also attested
by Mr. John Young (Vide Howard Saunders' Manual p. 48.)
Although partially resident in this country, most of the pairs which breed
with us arrive from Africa about the middle of April, and leave us again in
September.
The Blackcap is a bird which delights in wild dense uncultivated land,
almost impenetrable thickets, tangled hedges, plantations where hawthorn
bushes alternate with straggling brambles, nettles, and honeysuckle vines ; even
in badl}^ kept gardens, where roses have run riot among the shrubs : in such
spots it builds its neat and strongly constructed nest. In the clearings of the
Kentish woods, where the removal of the trees has permitted the wild black-
berry, brion}', convolvulus and many other things to sprawl over one another
in profusion, rendering progression ruinous to clothing, I have often come
across the nest of this bird : such clearings may either be on the outskirts
or some distance within a wood. In the former case they are only separated
from the main road by a hedge, or terminate in a steep bank running
downwards to the thoroughfare ; in the latter case, the}- adjoin a rough cart
road cut through the wood. Little accidental clearings, entered by ' blind '*
keeper's paths, are also very favourite sites for the nest of this bird. The
structure is very strongly built (though sometimes the walls are not very
thick) and it is firmly attached to the stems of hawthorn, bramble, or other
low-growing vegetation in which it is located. In fonn it is a neatly rounded
* That is to say, long disused and o\ergrown with moss and weeds.
The Blackcap 71
cup, with walls externall}- composed of fine dry tough grass, more rarely with
an admixture of straw, internally of fine grass, root-fibre and horsehair; the
outside is sometimes interwoven with a little moss and always strengthened
and bound to the supporting twigs by woollen thread or silk from the cocoons
of some spider or caterpillar: in some nests, however, this thread is very
scanty and can only be detected by carefully examining them with a lens,
whereas in others it gives the outer walls a fluffy appearance to the naked eye.
The eggs vary in number from four to five ; in size they are tolerably
uniform, those of young birds being slightly smaller than those deposited by
older individuals : in colouring they exhibit considerable variability ; so much
so that the tyro, unacquainted with the bird itself, its habits, or its nest,
might take specimens which, by comparison with imperfect illustrations, he
would perchance identify as those of the Garden Warbler, Greater Whitethroat,
Spotted Flycatcher and Titlark : even the experienced birdsnester unless aware
of the different character of the structures formed by the two species might
hesitate in deciding between some eggs of the Blackcap and those of the
Garden Warbler. The ground-tint of the eggs is either chalkj^ white, greenish
white, pale buff, brownish buff, or flesh pink ; the surface is more or less
densely spotted, blotched and streaked with soft greyish olive, earth-brown,
smoky brown, or (in the pink eggs) dull mahogany red, giving the egg the
appearance of having been smeared with blood ; above these again are sprinkled
little spots and thread-like lines of black, or black-brown, often placed in the
centre of a patch of the paler colouring which they serve to intensify.
The flesh-coloured variety, which somewhat vaguely resembles the egg of the
Spotted Flycatcher, is rare ; the only two nests purely of this type which I ever
obtained, were probably the produce of the same pair of birds in succeeding
years ; the two nests being situated near the top of the same rough hedge outside
a small wood at Tunstall in Kent; the first I took on the 24th May, 1877, the
second on the 29th May, 1878 : those of the later clutch are slightly larger and
less pyriform than those of the previous year. Another variety, almost equally
rare, has the ground-tint brownish buff, so densely mottled and blotched with
broAvnish russet that, but for its minute black markings, it might almost be
mistaken for some eggs of the Tree- Pipit.
Both sexes incubate, but the male bird is more frequently seen on the nest
than the female ; it is therefore probable that, as in the case of Doves, the hen
sleeps on the nest and gives up her place to the cock, for day-duty, after he has
finished his breakfast, only returning from time to time to enable him to feed.
The nest of the Blackcap is not only built about a fortnight earlier than that
72 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
of the Garden Warbler ; but, even when not tenanted, may be recognized as
distinct from it, by its smaller, neater, and far more compact character; the eggs
also are frequently slightly smaller, and, even when somewhat like those of
C. Iioiitiisis, differ in the greater prominence of the small black markings on their
surface.
The food of this species consists of insects and their larvae, spiders, centipedes,
small fruits and berries, more especially elder and service berries, though those of
the ivy are also eaten by it ; the young are, however, principally fed upon small
caterpillars. Although, on the Continent, it is said to feed upon ripe figs, my
experience of it in confinement is, that it will not touch dried figs when cut open
and placed with the soft food, but red or white currants it devours with avidity.
Next to the Nightingale, the Blackcap is certainly our finest songster, and
its powers of mimicry as well as its ventriloquial gifts are superior to those of
that most charming of all feathered vocalists ; its song is at one time full, rich
and clear as that of a Blackbird, then soft and mellow, again brilliant and
plaintive as a Robin's notes, or rapid and almost shrill as those of a Wren ; it
can copy deceptively the notes of many birds, even some portions of the Nightin-
gale's song, but it is almost too loud in its utterances to produce the latter in
its purity. Among foreign songsters the only bird which reminds one somewhat
of our Blackcap is the so-called " Pekin Nightingale" fLiothrix luteusj, a bird
evidently far more nearly related to our Hedge Accentor.
The song of the Blackcap may be heard from the highest branches of a lofty
tree, from a low shrub, or even from the nest as it sits ; but after the young are
hatched it ceases, the duty of finding food for its babes occupying the bird's
whole attention. When frightened this species scolds somewhat after the fashion
of a Whitethroat, and, if flushed from its nest, it remains close by hissing angrily;
its call-note is said to be a repetition of the word tac or tec harshly uttered ; but
it may be questioned whether this is really the call to its mate ; it seems
more probable that it is merely a querulous observation, such as many of
these Warblers indulge in at the approach of man : I am satisfied that its call
is a soft whistle.
In the autumn of 1894, I purchased a male Blackcap, which was procured
for me by Mr. E. P. Staines, who kindly took the trouble to "meat it off"* for
me. I turned it out into the same aviary with my Redstart and Wagtails, where
it soon made itself at home; it used generally to roost upon a nail which had
been driven into the wall, in the first instance, to support a log-nest. This bird
• A term applied to the process by which a wild-caught bird is induced to feed upon a soft mixture.
Many aviculturists make the mistake of using finely chopped raw meat mixed with bread-crumbs for this
purpose, hence the term has arisen.
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The Garden Warbler. 73
in due course became fairly tame ; it was tolerably quick at seizing spiders or
mealworms and even earwigs, when these were thrown into the aviary. In the
spring it began to record its song on one or two occasions, but I never heard it
sing out. Eventually a Rosa's Parrakeet bit one of its wings through, and a
week later it died.
Family— TURDIDyE. Subfamily— S YL VIINAi.
The Garden Warbler.
Sylvia hortensis, BechsT.
MORE delicate than the Blackcap, the Garden Warbler does not arrive in
.this country until early in May, and towards the end of September it
departs on its autumn migration. This species breeds locally throughout Europe,
from about 70° N. in Norway, and 65° N. in Finland and Russia, to the shores of the
Mediterranean, but it does not appear to winter in Europe ; it is not known to
breed in Sicily or Greece, but Canon Tristram states that it does so in Palestine ;
eastwards its range extends to lat. 59° in the Ural Mountains : its migration
extends through Asia Minor and Egypt to the Sahara, Damaraland, the Transvaal
and to the east of Cape Colony.
Generally but very locally distributed over the greater part of England, but
not recorded as breeding beyond Pembrokeshire and Breconshire in Wales, or in
the western part of Cornwall ; probably pretty generally distributed in Scotland,
although this has been questioned ; it has nevertheless been seen in most of the
midland and southern counties from Banffshire downwards. In Ireland the Garden
Warbler is both local and rare, but it has been recorded from Antrim, Fermanagh,
Dublin, Wicklow, Tipperary and Cork.
Gatke states that the Garden Warbler though quite common at Heligoland
during both spring and autumn migrations, is less numerously represented than
the Whitethroat.
Vol. I. O
74 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
The Garden Warbler in breeding plumage is olive-brown above, the wings
and tail slightly darker, the flight feathers with narrow pale margins ; a slightly-
paler streak over the eyes ; under parts dull huffish white, purer on the belly,
browner on the breast, flanks and centre of tinder tail-coverts. Bill deep brown,
base of lower mandible paler, feet leaden grey, iris hazel, eyelid white. The
female is very like the male but is slightly paler and probably has a somewhat
broader head, but of this I am not certain. After the autumn moult the adult
birds become more olive above and more buff-coloured below. Young birds
resemble their parents in winter plumage, but their secondaries have well-marked
pale margins. The breeding season extends from the end of May to about the
end of July.
I have found this species breeding in considerable numbers in North Kent,
occupying the same localities as the Blackcap, which was also fairly abundant ; I
am therefore not prepared to endorse Seebohm's statement that " where the Garden
Warbler is abundant the Blackcap seems always to be rare, and vice versa.'' In
one sense, indeed, they do not breed together ; the Garden Warbler begins to
build about a fortnight or three weeks later than the Blackcap, and by the time
her first ^^g is deposited the earlier bird is hatching out or rearing her family.
Although often heard in the woods, this species is less frequently seen there than
either the Nightingale or Blackcap ; it is a shy skulking little bird frequenting the
densest cover, the outskirts of woods where the undergrowth is thick and .tangled,
also the so-called " shaws and shaves " of Kent, almost impenetrable copses and
plantations, well-timbered gardens, nurseries, and shrubberies ; the fact that the
Garden Warbler can be better recognised in the generally wider open spaces of the
last mentioned haunts, having doubtless earned it the name of hortensis.
The nest of this bird is usually situated in tangled blackberry, or low bushes, in
copses or shrubberies ; but in kitchen gardens it may sometimes be seen in goose-
berry bushes, or among well-covered pea-sticks : amongst the undergrowth in
small woods and thickets it is b}^ no means a rare object at the end of May or
early in June ; though, of course, less common than that of the Whitethroat : I
have never found it at any great altitude, usually about two or three feet above
the ground. The structure of the nest is externally somewhat looser and more
slovenly than that of the Blackcap, but the cup is beautifully formed within ; the
outer walls are formed of dry bents, or goose-grass and other fibrous plants;
sometimes mixed with a little moss and wool and lined with fine roots and horse-
hair. The eggs vary in number from four to five and are tolerably constant in
their colouring ; they are generally creamy, but sometimes pale greenish white,
blotched and spotted with pale greyish olive or rufous brownish, with sometimes a
The Garden Warbler. 75
few underlying spots of pearl grey, and a few blackish-brown surface spots or hair-
lines ; some examples are very faintly marked, with all the markings sinuous but
arranged longitudinally and covering the whole surface, others have somewhat
bolder nebulous patches of spots chiefly confined to the larger end, in others most
of the markings run together into a vague smoky cap at the larger end, leaving
the remainder of the egg almost white ; but the general effect of a crowd of Garden
Warbler's eggs impresses one with the conviction that they are extremely uniform
in tone : some clutches contain small eggs, others large, according to the age of
the parents ; their average size is about the same as those of the Blackcap ; but
the latter bird sometimes lays a much shorter and rounder egg than I have ever
found in a Garden Warbler's nest.
The Garden Warbler sits somewhat closer than the Blackcap, only slipping
off her eggs at the last moment and then diving down over the edge of the nest,
so close to your hand that her wing will sometimes brush your fingers ; there is
therefore no difficulty, apart from the different character of the nest, in making
certain of the identity of any eggs which you take yourself, and there is only one
variety of the Blackcap's eggs which could by any chance be mistaken for the
product of Sylvia Jiortensis.
The song of the Garden Warbler is exceedingly pleasing, less rich and full
than that of the Blackcap ; somewhat more plaintive, though rapidly enunciated ;
in tone reminding one a little of an extra good Canary, yet without the shrieking
notes which frequently mar the song of that bird. Excepting when rearing its
young, this species sings frequently throughout the day, but whether it sings
again after the rearing of its single brood (I do not believe in the double-
broodedness of this bird) I cannot say ; probably not : all I can positively state is
that I have never heard it even as late as July, a month in which, occasionally, a
late nest may be taken.
The food of 5. hortensis in the spring and summer consists very largely of
spiders, insects and their larvae, the caterpillars of the two smaller Cabbage
butterflies (Ganoris rapce and G. napij being favourite articles of diet and largely
used for feeding the nestlings*. In the summer, however, currants and strawberries
are not despised by the Garden Warbler, while in the autumn fruits and berries
seem to become its favourite food.
The alarm note of the Garden Warbler is a kind of check, check, sometimes
followed by a guttural sound. Speaking of the Garden Warbler, Stevenson
* These larvae are eaten with avidity by all insectivorous birds ; whereas the caterpillars of the larj^e
Cabbage butterfly (G. BrasskaJ seem to be offensive to nearly all. Why this should be the case, when one
sees that all three caterpillars eat the same leaves, and produce very similiar butterflies (which are eaten indi.s-
criminately) is a poser.
76 British Birds with their Nests and Eggs.
observes : — " I have rarel}- detected the song of this warbler in summer in dose
vicinit}^ to the city, but in autumn, towards the end of August or beginning of
September, a pair or two, with their little families (and the same ma}- be said of
the Blackcap and Whitethroat) invariably appear amongst the shrubs in mj- garden,
betraying their presence by the same anxious cries so aptl}' described by Mr.
Blyth, as ' resembling the sound produced by tapping two small pebbles together.'
This is evidently intended as a note of warning to the young brood, alwaj's care-
fully concealed amongst the thick foliage, their whereabouts being indicated only
by a rapid movement of the leaves, as they search the branches for berries and
insects."
The call of the Garden Warbler to its mate is certain to be a soft sound ;
but I have not speciallj' noted it ; and, in all works on British Birds which I have
studied the cry of alarm or warning is incorrectly stated to be the call -note : the
same error is made with regard to many other species, not onlj- of European but
of foreign birds ; the harsh scolding chatter of the Pekin Nightingale having been
stated to be its call note, probabl}- because both sexes scold in unison ; whereas
the actual call of that species consists, in the hen — of a single whistled note
repeated five times, and in the cock — of a short measured song consisting of seven
or nine notes.
The Garden Warbler in confinement is certainly more sensitive to cold than
the Blackcap : a friend of mine who is very fond of fishing, sometimes takes a
fine net with him which he fixes up across the trout-stream ; by this means he
has, from time to time, secured many interesting birds for stuffing (a proceeding with
which I have no sympath}-, for to ni}' mind a live bird in the bush is far prefer-
able to fifty dead birds in the hand). However, in September, 1888, he brought
me two living birds, one of which was a male Garden Warbler. I turned these
birds into a large cool aviar}^ among Waxbills, Mannikins and British Finches.
The Garden Warbler seemed perfectly content, ate the usual soft food, as well as
a few mealworms, caterpillars and spiders ; the frost did not appear to affect it
unpleasantly, and, in the early spring, it sang heartily every da}^ : in May its song
became less frequent, it grew somewhat listless in its movements, yet continued
to eat as freely as ever. One morning, in July, 1889, I found it dead, and
dissection showed that its lungs were seriously affected. I should therefore recom-
mend Aviculturists to keep this Warbler in a mild temperature during the winter
months, and give it as much insect food as possible : it ought, moreover, to be
kept in an aviary, so that it nia}^ be able to take plenty of healthful exercise.*
* Mr. Staines, of Penj^e, j;ave me a second male in July, 1896, which is in perfect health at the time of
penning this article.
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The Barred Warbler. 77
As an aviary bird, the Garden Warbler is well worth keeping ; it is active
and at the same time capable of being tamed, although somewhat more shy than
the Blackcap ; its song, though inferior to that of the latter species, is infinitely
superior to that of any of the British Finches, yet that is not saying much for
it, inasmuch as even the Robin's plaintive little melody is purer in tone and more
grateful to the ear than that of any of our Finches.
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— SYLVIIN^.
The Barred Warbler.
Sylvia nisoria, BechsT.
RESPECTING the distribution of this rare species Seebohm writes: — "Besides
South Sweden, it breeds in Germany east of the Rhine, Transylvania, South
Russia, Persia, and Turkestan, as far east as Kashgar. It passes through South-
eastern France, Italy, Turkey, Greece, Asia Minor, and North-east Africa, as it is
said to pass through Nubia in spring and autumn, but has not been recorded
from the Transvaal. Its alleged occurrence in China is probably an instance of
mistaken identification."
The same author, writing in 1883, observes that "The only claim of the Barred
Warbler to be considered a British bird rests upon a single example, shot more
than forty years ago near Cambridge — but apparently not brought under the
notice of Ornithologists until March, 1879, when Prof. Newton exhibited it at a
meeting of the Zoological Society of London, a record of which may be found in
the Proceedings for that year, page 219."
The record referred to by Mr. Seebohm runs as follows : — " This specimen
was formerly the propert}^ of Mr. Germany, for many years the highly-respected
porter of Queen's College, who in the course of a long life formed a considerable
collection of birds, nearly all obtained by himself in and near Cambridge, and also
stuffed by himself. At his death, more than twenty years ago, it passed, with
78 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
many others of his specimens, into the possession of an old friend of his, Mr.
Elijah Tarrant, of whom Mr. John Robinson, an undergraduate of Trinity Hall,
bought it about a twelvemonth since. Up to this time no one seems to have
known what the bird was, though some ingenious person had hazarded the sug-
gestion that it was a variety of the Nightingale. Soon after it was seen by Mr.
Frederick Bond, F.Z.S., who at once recognised it as Sylvia nisoria, and was good
enough to advise its being shown to me."
Prof. Newton then proceeds to point out good and sufl&cient reasons for
believing that this specimen actually was obtained in England. Apparently it was
shot either in spring or early summer : it was skulking in dense foliage and was
only shot with the greatest difficulty and then at so short a range that a good
many of its feathers were knocked out. *The taxidermist who stuffed it inserted
a glass eye with a pale yellow iris, a clear proof that he must have seen the bird
very soon after it was shot ; otherwise it is not probable that he would have
selected a colour which is rare in the family.
Had the occurrence of this single example been the sole argument in favour
of regarding the Barred Warbler as British, I should have treated the species as
a mere chance visitor to our islands, and practically ignored it ; but singularly
enough, on the very year after the publication of Mr. Seebohm's observation,
three specimens were brought to the notice of Zoologists : the first of these, a
young bird, was shot on August i6th, 1884, near Broadford in the Isle of Skye,
by Mr. G. D. Lees ; the second, an immature female, on the 28th of the same
month, by the Rev. H. H. Slater, who observed it skulking in an elder-hedge by
a potato-garden in some sand hills on the Yorkshire coast, he stated that the bird
was very shy and difficult to see ; the third, another immature female, was shot
by Mr. F. D. Power, of Brixton, on the 4th of September, from scrub at the base
of Blakeney sandhills, Norfolk. The occurrence of three young examples in one
year, almost seems to justify the conclusion that this Warbler, when on migration,
may frequently visit us ; but, owing to its disinclination to show itself in the open,
may have evaded observation.
In the last edition of Stevenson's " Birds of Norfolk," edited by Thos. South-
well, a member of the British Ornithologists' Union, the latter gentleman speaks
of an example of the Barred Warbler as having been shot at Blakeney after easterly
winds on the loth September, 1888, and he says that this bird on dissection
proved to be a male. The contents of the stomach consisted largely of earwigs.
This would appear to be distinctly a fifth occurrence of the Barred Warbler
upon the British coasts : scrub in the vicinity of sandhills seems to be the most
• This specimen is still in the possession of Mr. Robinson, who resides at Elterwater, Westmoreland.
The Barred Warbler, 79
likely haunt in wliicli to seek the species, whilst August and September are the
months most favourable for the search ; but it seems a thousand pities that these
rare birds should not be captured alive, and their habits in captivity studied in
detail. All that can be learnt from the stuifed skin of a Barred Warbler has
either long been known, or can be equally well studied from skins already in our
cabinets ; but really to know something of the nature and peculiarities of a bird,
it must be studied, not onty flying freely in its native home, but in a good sized
aviary. Lord Lilford has set an example which might, with advantage to Ornith-
ological science, be well followed by many other Naturalists, and especially those
with means and leisure.
When on migration the Barred Warbler reaches Heligoland in May and June,
but Gatke speaks of it as by far the rarest of those belonging to Germany which
are met with on that island; he says: — "The bird is never seen before the middle
of May, and then only on warm, calm days, and in solitary instances ; nor can it
be by any means reckoned as a regular annual summer visitant."
The adult male in breeding plumage is smoky gre}^ above, the head, rump,
upper tail-coverts and tail-feathers greyer ; the wings browner ; the wing-coverts,
innermost secondaries, the feathers on the rump, the upper tail-coverts and the
outer tail-feathers are margined and tipped with white, and have blackish subter-
minal bar ; this is also sometimes the case with the forehead, lower back, and
scapulars ; the two central tail feathers are indistinctly barred ; under surface
greyish white, barred with grey, the breast, flanks, thighs, and under tail-coverts
browner, the flanks somewhat heavily barred ; axillaries and under wing-coverts
mottled with grey and white, bill dark brown, the lower mandible paler at the
base, feet greyish brown, iris pale yellow. The female is very like the male, but
slightly browner and with fewer transverse bars. In the autumn the colouring
becomes browner and the bars on the feathers more pronounced. Young
birds are browner than adults and are hardly barred at all excepting on the
under tail- coverts.
Although not unlike the Whitethroat in its habits and even in its song, the
Barred Warbler is far more shy and skulking, rarely leaving the dense cover of
briar and brushwood ; though not frequently met with in forests, it haunts planta-
tions, copses, and tangled masses of thorn and blackberry, and from such retreats
its song may be heard : this, though harsh in some of its notes, is said to be
almost equal to that of the Garden Warbler and to include tones rich as those of
the Blackcap.
The call-note is described as resembling the syllable chek ; and the alarm note
r-r-r-r-r, a harsh, warning cry.
8o British Birds with their Nests and Eggs.
The food of the Barred Warbler does not materially differ from that of most
other species of Sylvia; it consists largely of insects, with the addition of fruit
and berries as soon as these are ripe ; it sometimes captures winged insects in the
air after the manner of its congeners.
The nest is usually placed in a thorn-bush in thick cover, and as a rule very
low down ; but one instance is recorded of its being built among the topmost twigs
of a birch-tree at a height of twenty-five feet above the ground. It is a firmly
built and somewhat bulky structure, roughly formed externally of bents and roots
intermingled with plant stalks and compacted with spiders' cocoons or vegetable
down ; the inside is neatly formed, deep and beautifully rounded, the lining con-
sisting of fine rootlets, horsehairs, and sometimes cobwebs.
The eggs vary from four to six in number, but five is the usual clutch : they
are dull huffish white marbled with grey, and are not unlike those of the Grey
Wagtail, excepting that they are larger ; sometimes, however, they are marbled
with brown with underlying grey spots ; the colouring being massed especially on
the larger end.
Speaking of the song of this species, Herr Mathias Rausch, in the " Gefiederte
Welt" for July 30th, 1891, observes that "it is just as beautiful and rich in
charming melodies as that of the Garden Warbler, for the most part flute-like and
full-toned, frequently indeed intermixed with somewhat rough guttural sounds, yet
withal distinctly powerful and also more or less intermingled with snatches from
the song of other birds. Also the song of this bird has a swing peculiar to it,
which characterizes the species as an original songster."
" Moreover if reared by hand or trapped when young. Barred Warblers, taught
by good cage-birds, certainly often become admirable imitators of the song of other
birds ; but, in the case of old wild-caught examples, this faculty is much less
perceptible, and for this reason it is hardly fair to reckon them plagiarists."
Lord Ivilford (Coloured figures of Birds of the British Islands) evidently has
not so high an opinion of the Barred Warbler's vocal attainments ; he says : — " I
have three of this species caged at this time of writing ; in attitude, song, and
general demeanour they very much resemble our Lesser Whitethroat, but are the
least restless of any Warblers that' I have ever kept in captivity." An adult which
lived for some months in the possession of Rev. H. A. Macpherson was a very
shy but active bird.
Dresser, in his " Birds of Europe," says :■ — " It is never seen sitting still, but
appears always moving about. If disturbed, or it sees anything strange, it raises
the feathers of its head, jerks its tail, and utters a harsh note. It creeps about
amongst the bushes, hopping about from twig to twig without using its wings.
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The Dartford Warbler. 8i
It is quarrelsome, and drives intruders from the vicinity of its nest."
" It sings from early in the morning, except during the heat of the day,
until late in the evening, and frequently sings when at some height in the air or
fluttering from tree to tree."
Family— TURDID^. ' Subfamily— SYLVIIN^R.
The Dartford Warbler.
Sylvia undaia, BoDD.
ALTHOUGH this Warbler has been known to breed in Kent, I have never
been able to be certain of having seen it, though I have sometimes suspected
that nests which I have discovered built in furze-bushes, might have been the work
of this species : whoever the architect was, she slipped away so quietly into the
dense, prickly cover on my approach, that I could not even get a glimpse of her,
and only knew of her whereabouts by the movement in the furze.
Howard Saunders gives the following as the geographical distribution of this
species : — " Although as a rule a non-migratory species, the Dartford Warbler has
been observed in Heligoland ; but it is unknown in Northern Germany, Holland,
or Belgium. Rather rare in the Channel Islands, it is found throughout France
in suitable localities, especially from the foot of the Western Pyrenees to Provence.
In many parts of Portugal and Spain it is common, and I have watched it singing
among the orange- gardens of Murcia ; while it nests in the sierras of the almost
tropical south coast at elevations of from 4,000 to 3,000 feet. In Morocco and
Algeria it is also resident, and it has been recorded from Lower Egypt, and
Palestine ; but in Europe its Eastern range is not known to extend beyond Italy
and Sicily, the bird seldom reaching Malta."
With regard to its distribution in Great Britain, this author says : — " It is
now known to breed in nearly all the southern counties, from Cornwall to Kent,
8a British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
especialljf in Hampsliire (including the Isle of Wight), Surrey and Sussex ; spar-
ingly in the valley of the Thames ; perhaps in some of the Midland Counties ;
and, on the sole authorit}- of Mr. C. Dixon, in the Rivelin valle}-, in the extreme
south of Yorkshire. It has been observed in Cambridgeshire and Norfolk ; while
in Suffolk a few probablj- breed."
Respecting its occurrence in Heligoland, Gatke saj-s that onl}- two
instances are recorded, " it having on one occasion been obtained by Re3aiers, and
on the other observed by mj^self, on May 31st, 1851, hopping about in the thorn-
hedge of a neighbouring garden at only a few paces distance. Unfortunately there
being other gardens behind the hedge in question in which people were occupied
at the time, I was unable to shoot the bird."
The adult male above is dark smoky brown, deeper and more slate-coloured
on the head, wings dark brown, the coverts, inner secondaries, and primaries with
pale brown outer margins ; tail dark grey, the two outside feathers with white
outer margins and tips ; under surface chestnut reddish, shading into white at the
centre of lower breast and abdomen ; under tail-coverts greyish ; bill deep horn
brown, base of lower mandible 3'ellowish ; feet pale brown, iris and eyelid saffron
yellow. The female is smaller than the male and the underparts are paler. After
the autumn moult the chin, throat, breast and flanks are spotted and streaked
with white : birds of the year are paler above and whiter below than the female.
The Dartford Warbler is an extremel}^ restless, but at the same time a
skulking bird ; Seebohm's description of its habits can, I think, hardl}- be improved
on ; he says : — " In summer the Dartford Warbler lives almost entireh' in the furze
bushes ; hence its local name of Furze- Wren. In winter, though it may often be
seen in its summer haunts, the necessity of procuring food prompts it to visit
the turnip-fields, or to range along the coast. Its long tail and short rounded
wings do not seem adapted to extensive flights ; but it has nevertheless been twice
seen on Heligoland. It is seldom seen on the wing. At Biarritz I found them
frequenting the reeds on the banks of a small lake. The first sight I had of one
was that of a little dark bird with a fan-like tail suddenly appearing amongst the
reeds on the opposite side. Occasionally, as we walked on the bank of the lake,
we heard a loud, clear, melodious pitch' -00 repeated once or twice amongst the
reeds. The note was so musical that for a moment one might imagine that a
Nightingale was beginning to strike up a tune. Now and then we saw the bird
appear for a moment above the reeds, as if thrown up by a battledore ; but it
dropped down again and disappeared as suddenly. I have ver}- rarel}- seen so
skulking a bird ; once only it flew up from the reeds, and perched in a willow
near a large patch of furze-bushes. Like most other Warblers this bird is very
The Dartford Warbler. 83
active, scarce!}' resting for a moment, except when warbling its hurried little song
from the top of a furze-branch. In many of its habits it reminds one of Cetti's
Warbler. It flits tip a furze-bush, dodging in and out amongst the side branches
in search of insects, perches for a moment on the topmost spraj- ; but before you
have had time to get your binocular on to it, it has caught sight of your move-
ment and drops down into the furze-bush as if shot."
The nest in Great Britain has always been found concealed amongst dense
furze, but on the Continent and more especially in the south it is said to be
placed in broom or heather ; the dead lower branches of the furze are selected as
a building site. In character the nest is small, deep and flimsy ; it is formed
principally of thin bents, interwoven with stems of goosegrass and moss, a little
green furze, and wool.
The eggs var}' from four to five and are greenish or huffish white, mottled
with olive and spotted with reddish brown ; the marking is more denseh- distri-
buted over the surface than in eggs of the Greater Whitethroat, to which in other
respects they bear a slight resemblance ; they however tend to be longer, and to
my mind would be more aptly likened to very diminutive eggs of the Rock Pipit,
or to some eggs of the Tree Sparrow. I do not think anyone well acquainted
with British Birds' eggs would ever confound those of the Dartford Warbler and
Whitethroat.
The breeding-season of this species is from April to July, and two broods are
reared in the year ; the second nest is said to be usually less compact than the
earlier one ; this is constructed in June, when there is less necessity for a warm
receptacle for the eggs.
The food of the Dartford Warbler consists principally of insects, and Mr.
Booth, in the "Zoologist" for 1887, states that it "generally feeds its young on
the body of a large yellow moth" which he says the parent birds hunted for
among the lower part of the stems of the foliage. I have little doubt the moth
intended is one of the common Yellow- underwings fTriphcena ianthiua, orhona, or
pfonubaj which I have frequently disturbed from furze-bushes in the day-time. In
the autumn wild berries are also eaten.
As this species is a fairly meritorious songster there is no doubt that it would
be an interesting aviary pet ; its scolding note is somewhat harsh cha-cha, but its
call-note is probably soft and pleasing like that of other Warblers. Its actions
are sprightly, the tail being expanded as it alights ; its flight is rapid and undu-
lating, but not powerful.
There is not the least doubt that this species could be fed in confinement
upon the mixture which I have recommended for other Insectivorous birds, supple-
84 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
mented by mealworms, caterpillars, moths, flies, cockroaches, earwigs, and spiders ;
these last, which are rarely mentioned in works on British Ornithology, form a
considerable portion of the diet of all Insectivorous birds ; they are not only easy
to capture, easy of digestion (even seeming to have a beneficial effect upon birds
when out of health) but they are relished much more than any form of insect or
its larvae, not excluding mealworms : centipedes also are eaten with avidit}^ but
not millipedes, and many birds refuse to touch woodlice or only kill and
leave them.
The Dartford Warblers which Montagu, kept in confinement were taken from
the nest and reared by hand. These birds "began to sing with the appearance of
their first mature feathers, and continued in song all the month of October."
Family— TURDID a;. Stcb/aviily—S YL VI/NyE.
The Golden-Crested Wren,
Regu/its crisiatus, K. L. KoCH.
PERHAPS to the case of few species are the observations of Herr Gatke more
applicable than to that of the Gold-crest when he says, speaking of the countless
myriads of birds which pass over Heligoland on migration, and furthermore of this
very species : — " The east- to- west migration of the Golden-crested Wren in October
1882, extended in one continuous column, not only across the east coast of England
and Scotland, but even up to the Faeroe Islands. When one thinks of numbers
of individuals such as these, which cannot be grasped by human intelligence, it
seems absurd to talk of a conceivable diminution in the number of birds being
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The Golden-Crested Wren. 85
effected through the agency of man. In one particular respect man no doubt does
exert a noticeable influence on the numbers of bird-life, not however by means of
net and gun, but rather by the increasing cultivation of the soil, which roots out
every bush and shrub, great or small, as a useless obstacle, and thus robs the bird
of even the last natural protection of its nest. Having thus driven the poor
creatures, into distant and less densely populated districts, we complain that we no
longer hear their merry song, unconscious of the fact that we are ourselves
responsible for the cause."
This is a point which I have always insisted upon : no Act for the protection
of wild birds, which does not forbid the wholesale grubbing of woods, and so-called
" waste land," will ever prevent the diminution of bird-life in our Islands.
The Gold-crest is generally distributed over Europe in Scandinavia northward
to the Arctic Circle, and in Russia from Archangel and the Ural Mountains ; in
the east, southwards to the Himalayas and China, and in the west down to the
Mediterranean.
Dixon (Jottings about Birds, p. 70) observes : — " It is said that the Gold-crest,
R. cristatiis (Koch) visits Algeria in winter, but I cannot find any conclusive
evidence of the fact. It is said regularly to pass Malta on migration in spring
and autumn."
In Great Britain it is generally distributed wherever coniferous trees occur,
and breeds with us.
Although the Gold-crest is the smallest British bird, its migratory powers are
inferior to none, and its capacity for resisting cold so great, that it remains with
us even in our severest winters : it is a common error to suppose that size neces-
sarily accompanies vigour, inasmuch as many of the tiniest birds are undoubtedly
far more hardy than larger species : as an instance, I would call attention to the
little Indian Avadavat, which I have proved to be indifferent to 21 degrees of
frost ; whereas many of the larger parrots, at anyrate if recently imported, as some
of ni}^ Waxbills had been, would have succumbed to a considerably higher
temperature.
The male Gold-crest is olive-green above more or less suffused with yellowish ;
the crown of the head bright yellow in front shading into orange behind and
bounded b}' a blackish streak, below which is a greyish white superciliary streak ;
the wing and tail-feathers are greyish brown, the median and greater wing-coverts
edged with white, the primary-coverts being blackish ; secondaries tipped with
white ; under parts pale greyish-brown or greenish-buff, whiter on the abdomen ;
bill blackish-brown, feet brown, iris hazel.
The female is less brightly coloured than the male, the crown brown-yellow
86 British Birds with their Nests and Eggs.
with narrower blackish streak. In the young the crown is slightly darker than
the back, but shows no trace of yellow or black.
In many illustrations this bird is represented with a well-defined crest ; but,
so far as I have seen, the feathers of the crown seem to be erected very slightly,
if at all ; though, when the little creature looks downwards, the feathers at the
back of the crown project slightly above those of the nape. Possibly under great
excitement the feathers of the crown would be partially raised as they are in
many birds ; but whether, even then, they would stick up like the quills of the
" prickly porcupine," as artists delight in representing them as doing, is, I think
questionable.
Mr. Frohawk, who has had considerable experience of the Gold-crest, tells me
that in the autumn this species may frequently be met with singly, or in pairs ;
but in the winter it is generally seen in flocks, and often in company of Long-
tailed Tits. In the latter season it haunts pine-forests, as well as hedges ; but in
the breeding season plantations of spruce and larch are its favourite resorts. The
male sings continuously in the vicinity of its nest, and if disturbed the old birds
creep about incessantly near to their home with quivering wings.
Furthermore, Mr. Frohawk says that he has never known a Gold-crest to
erect a crest; the feathers of the head are, however, somewhat expanded laterally
so as to expose the golden stripe in its full beauty, this stripe being very narrow
when the bird is in repose. Mr. Staines, of Penge, who has on several occasions
attempted to keep the Gold-crest as a cage bird, confirms Mr. Frohawk's opinion
in all particulars : he has never seen the bird erect, though he has seen it expand
its crest.
Lord Lilford (Birds of Northamptonshire) says : — " The call-note of the Gold-
crest is peculiar and constantly repeated whilst the birds are on their excursions.
In very cold weather I have found a family of perhaps a dozen of these little
birds clustered together for warmth beneath the snow-laden bough of an old yew-
tree, to the under surface of which the uppermost birds were clinging by their
feet, whilst, as far as I could see, the others clung to them and to one another,
so as to form a closely packed feathery ball. I happened to notice this by chance,
and, in the gloom of the overhanging boughs, thought it was an old nest, but on
touching it with the end of a walking-stick, the supposed nest dissolved itself into
a number of these minute creatures, who did not appear much alarmed, but dis-
persed themselves on the adjoining boughs, and, no doubt, soon resumed their
previous formation, which I was sorry to have disturbed. Although the nests of
the Gold-crest are generally placed under the branches of a yew or a fir tree, we have
twice found them in a thin fence at about five feet from the ground ; the materials
The Golden-Crested Wren. 87
are soft moss and lichens, wool, a little grass, and a mass of small feathers by
way of lining.* The eggs are of a yellowish-white, very closely spotted or clouded
with pale rust-colour, and vary in number from six or seven to ten or more ; I
once found twelve in a nest."
A nest in my collection, taken from the undersurface of a yew-branch and
interlaced in the terminal feathery leaves, is formed almost entirely of moss, com-
pacted with spiders' silk and one or two small feathers ; the lining appears to
consist wholly of small soft feathers. Some eggs which I have seen, were creamy
white ; others, densely and minutely dusted all over with rusty-reddish ; others
again, with a deeper rust red zone, or terminal nebula, at the larger extremity.
The song of the Gold-crest is short, low, but pleasing ; though its call-notes
are thin and almost as shrill as the notes of a bat. Dixon in describing the song
calls it eulogistically " a few notes of matchless melody."
This tiny bird haunts woods, shrubberies, plantations of fir, larch and other
conifers, yew-trees in churchyards and cemeteries, copses, orchards and gardens.
In its habits it greatly resembles the Tits, dropping from spray to twig, turning,
twisting, closely examining every inch of its swaying perch for insect prey, and
incessantly uttering its high piercing whistle ; then, gliding rapidly from the end
of some feathery spray, it passes on to another tree and recommences its acrobatic
performances. Like the Tits also, this little bird is wonderfully confiding: one
autumn whilst standing on a balcony leading by steps into the garden of the house
which I then inhabited, I heard the shrill note of this species just above my head
and looking upwards saw a pair of Gold-crests clambering about over a jasmine
which I had trained to cover a wire arch above the doorway ; they appeared to be
quite indifferent to my presence not a foot below them.
Stevenson, in his "Birds of Norfolk" after speaking of the well ascertained
fact that thousands of these tiny birds in the autumn come to swell the numbers
of our residents, observes : — " Perhaps the most striking instance, however, of the
migration of the Gold- crest, in large numbers, to our eastern coast, was witnessed
by Captain Longe, of Great Yarmouth, on the morning of the 2nd of November, 1862.
In a letter to myself at the time, he says ' As I was walking to Hemsby, about
7-30 when it was just daylight, about half a mile out of Yarmouth, on the Caister
road, my attention was attracted to a small bush overhanging the marsh dyke,
* Mr. A. T. Mitchell, has drawn attention to the fact that, in some parts of Ireland, the Gold-crest "builds
commonly against the sides of ivy-covered trees. The nest is not suspended under a branch of fir, as I have
found it in England, and the nests here are badly and loosely put together." Mr. J. Trumbull states that of
seventeen nests of the Gold-crest found in Co. Dublin, only four were placed beneath the surface of a branch.
Mr. H. S. Davenport, has found half a dozen nests of the Gold-crest "placed against the sides of ivy-clad trees."
The Rev. H. A. Macpherson has also pointed out that the Gold-crest occasionally builds its nest in the middle
of a furze-bush (Cf. Zool. 1895. pp. 385, 431, 448.)
8S British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs
which borders the pathway, b}- the continuous twittering of a small bird. On
looking closel}', I found the bush, small as it was, literally covered with Golden-
crested Wrens. There was hardly an inch of twig that had not a bird on it, and
even from m}' rough attempt at calculation at the time, I feel sure there were at
least between two and three hundred. Most of them were either females or young
birds, having a lemon-coloured crest ; they were perfectly tame, and although I sat
down on the other side of the ditch, within six feet, and watched them for some
time, they did not attempt to fly away ; but one or more would occasionalh' rise
off its perch, hover like a butterfl}^ and settle again in some other position. I
went the next morning to look for them, but they were all gone. The wind had
been easterly, with much fog.' "
The food of the Gold-crest consists principally of insects, small spiders, &c. ;
but it eats a few seeds and small berries : in captivity Abrahams' food and bread-
crumbs moistened, also boiled potato, cooked the previous day, and finely chopped
up with yolk of egg, would form a good staple diet ; small mealworms, ant's larvae,
small caterpillars, flies, and spiders being given when procurable.
Although sometimes kept in quite small cages, this bird, to be properlj'
studied, should be turned loose in a moderately large aviary, planted with firs
and yews ; or at any rate with a few pot specimens of these trees standing about ;
but whether it be kept in cage or aviar}-, a snugly lined box should be hung up
in one corner to which it may retire for warmth at night ; for, although the Gold-
crest is undoubtedly a hardy bird like the Tits, captivity at best deprives it of
much of the free exercise which it takes throughout the day when at liberty ; this,
in conjunction with somewhat unnatural diet, less pure air, and the lack of
companionship of any of its own species, doubtless tend to weaken and undermine
the constitution of this feathered mite.
In my opinion a bird which is never seen singlj-, but, at the very least in
pairs, should not be caged bj- itself; solitary confinement may not be objectionable
to a parrot ; but to a species which, when not breeding, is seen in famil}^ parties,
small companies, or even in countless mj^riads, solitar}- confinement must be in the
highest degree irksome : an aviary about eight feet square, devoted to a score or
so of these fairy-like little birds, would be " a thing of beaut}' and a joj^ for ever."
The Fire-Crested Wren. 89
rawily— TURDIDA^. Subfamjly—S YL VIINA'..
The Fire-Crested Wren.
Regulus igiiicapi/Iits, C. L. Brehm.
A NOT infrequent straggler to the British Isles, the Fire-crest may fully claim
its title to a place in these pages. Of its geographical distribution Howard
Saunders writes : — " The Fire-crested Wren has a much less extended range north-
ward than its congener, and although it appears to have straggled to the Faeroes,
it is unknown in Scandinavia ; barely reaches Denmark ; and does not occur to the
north-east of the Baltic Provinces of Germany. To some parts of the Rhine
district it is rather partial in summer ; and, although local in its distribution, it
breeds in France, Spain, Ital}-, Switzerland, Central and Southern Germany, Greece,
Turkey, and Southern Russia. In the Taurus Range of Asia Minor, it is more
abundant than the Gold-crest. In the mountain- forests of Algeria, and in some
parts of Southern Europe, the Fire-crest is resident throughout the year ; its
numbers being augmented in winter by migrants from the north."
Herr Gatke says : — " This species is a little smaller, and by reason of its
black eye-streak, still somewhat more prettily marked bird than the preceding. It
visits Heligoland almost as regiilarly as the latter, but invariably in verj- small
numbers. In the spring it arrives somewhat sooner, and in the autumn somewhat
later than R. flavicapilius—7i\\6. thus may be said in a sense to open and close the
migration of the crested Wrens."
In England specimens of the Fire-crest have been obtained since 1832, when
a cat slaughtered the first recognised specimen ; the following counties having at
various times witnessed its destruction : — Cumberland, Durham, Yorkshire, Lanca-
shire, N. Wales, Norfolk, Sussex, Kent, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Devonshire,
Oxon, Cornwall, and the Scilly Islands. One specimen is said to have occurred in
Scotland in 1848, and one was supposed to have been seen at Tralee in Ireland ;
but both of these occurrences are considered to be open to doubt.
In general appearance the Fire-crest greatly resembles the Gold-crest, but
differs in its yellowish frontal band, whiter superciliary streak, frequently more
orange crown, a second black streak passing from the gape through the e^^e, and
90 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
a third moustachial streak; the sides of neck and the shoulders washed with
sulphur yellow ; feathers of wings and tail brown, with yellowish- green edges ; the
greater and median wing-coverts tipped with white and the primary coverts dark
brown ; under parts dull huffish white ; bill blackish brown, feet dark brown, iris
hazel.
The female is duller in colouring than the male and has a paler crest ; young
birds have the crown of the same colour as the rest of the upper surface, only
acquiring the yellow colouring after the first moult.
The habits, haunts and even the nest and eggs of this species are extremely
like those of its near relative the Gold-crest ; the nest is similarly suspended and
is usually formed of moss felted with spiders' cocoons and thickly lined with
feathers. If the branch in which it is placed chances to be covered with lichens,
the Fire-crest utilizes these also in the outer walls ; in all probability this is done
simply because the material is at hand ; not, as has been suggested, with any idea
of imitating the surroundings of the nest, with a view to its concealment. That
the use of that which is most easily obtainable, because nearest, does often greatly
add to the difficulty of discovering a nest by the inexperienced collector, nobody
will deny ; but to credit the little architect with deliberate design in the use of
such material is, in my opinion, utter nonsense : indeed I have seen the nest of a
Chaffinch in a hedge rendered most conspicuous by a covering of lichen from the
trunk of a tree a yard or two behind it, and a Wren's nest built of coarse dead
grass and standing out prominently from the mossy trunk of a tree : both of these
nests are in my collection.
Speaking of the habits of the Fire-crest, Seebohm says : — " Their presence is
at once betrayed by their soft notes, a monotonous zit-zit, which is continually
uttered as they are busily employed feeding on insects under the leaves of the
overhanging trees, and becomes a rapid z-z-z-zit as they chase each other from tree
to tree, or fly off in alarm at your movements. If you remain perfectly still they
will sometimes come and feed close to you, occasionally two or three of them
within a few feet of your head. It is very curious then to watch their movements.
They twist in and out among the slender twigs, sometimes with head down and
sometimes with feet up ; but by far the most curious part of the performance is
when they come to the end of the twig and examine the under surface of the
leaves at its extremity. They have nothing to stand upon ; so they flutter more
like bees than birds from leaf to leaf, their little wings beating so fast that they
look transparent, their bodies all the time being nearly perpendicular. Of course
it is only on large-leafed oaks, and the shrubs that form the underwood in the
garden, that you can examine them closely. In the pine-forest, when all
The Fire-Crested Wren. 91
the branches for twenty feet are broken off for fuel, 5rou require a glass to see
them well." (British Birds, vol. i, p. 459).
Seebohm quotes the following from Dixon's Algerian notes on this species : — ■
" The trees are full of life. Here in close company with the rare Algerian Coal
Tit, the Fire-crest is very common. It is seen in the tall cedar trees, and is
restless and busy amongst the branches fifty feet above, exploring all the twigs in
search of its favourite food. The Fire-crest is also almost as common in the
evergreen-oak forests, searching the lower branches all amongst the lichens and
tree-moss for insects ; and every now and then its brilliant crest glistens conspic-
uously in the sunlight. Its note sounds shriller to me than a Gold-crest's ; but I
think it was quite as familiar and trustful as that other little favourite bird of
mine. In its motions it puts you in mind of the Willow Wrens ; and when, as I
have sometimes seen it, hanging with one leg from a drooping bough, picking
out the insects from a bud, it looks precisely like a Tit. Although we were in
these forests in May, the birds did not seem to have begun to breed."
Other writers, however, state that the note of the Fire-crest is " not so shrill "
as that of the commoner species.
The eggs, although averaging about the same number as those of the Gold-
crest, are, I believe invariably, redder than even the most rusty eggs of that
species, the markings usually covering their entire surface.
Speaking of the nesting of this species Howard Saunders remarks : — " In
Germany the branches of a fir-tree are almost invariably selected ; the nest being
seldom found in pines or larches ; and the same trees are frequented year after
year. In the above country nesting does not begin before May ; but in the south
of Spain the young are able to fly by the middle of that month. Insects and
spiders constitute its food." He continues thus : — " In the Pyrenees, with excellent
opportunities for observing the habits of both species, I noticed that the Fire-crest
was much more restless and erratic in its movements, darting away suddenly after
a! very short stay upon the gorse-bush or tree where it was feeding, and being
often alone or in parties of two or three at most ; whereas the Gold-crests, five or
six together, would work steadily round the same bush, and, if I remained quiet,
would stop there for many minutes."
Hewitson in the third edition of his "Eggs of British Birds" states that the
" Rev. E. H. Browne has watched this species during the summer, near his
residence, at Bio' Norton, in Norfolk, and has no doubt it breeds there." The
probability is that he was merely misled by brightly coloured examples of the
Gold-crest, not being aware of the true distinctive characters of the two species :
at any rate his supposition has not been confirmed.
92 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
In an aviary the Fire-crest might be associated with the Gold-crest and would
require precisely the same treatment ; but it is not probable that many Avicul-
turists will have an opportunity of obtaining it in this country, Dr. Russ says
that until recently it was supposed to be impossible to keep the European species
of Regu/us for any length of time, but recently they have been found in the care
of a considerable number of aviarists ; he however considers their habituation to
confinement difficult. In disposition they are particularly gentle, sociable and
peaceable.
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— SYLVIIN^.
The Yellow-Browed Warbler.
Phylloscopns stiperciliosits, GiMEL.
MR. Howard Saunders only mentions three examples of this pretty little species
as having been obtained in Great Britain : but, in " the Zoologist " for
December, 1894, Mr. J. E. Harting says: — "On October 8th, Mr. Swailes, an
observant nurseryman, at Beverley, hearing the note of a small warbler which was
unfamiliar to him, shot the bird, and sent it for identification to Mr. F. Boyes, who
pronounced it to be Phylloscopns supcrciliosus, and on communicating this information,
Mr. Swailes found and shot two others in the same locality. Mr. Boyes having
reported this interesting occurrence in 'The Field' of October 27th, Mr. J. H.
Gumey, in the succeeding issue (Nov. 3rd) announced that on Oct. ist one of these
little birds was shot on the coast of Norfolk by a labouring man, who fired at it
merely for the purpose of unloading his gun! As ten instances of the occurrence
of this species in the British Islands have now been made known, its claim to be
Yellow-Browed Warbler.
The Yellow-Browed Warbler. 93
regarded as a British bird, which for a quarter of a century remained doubtfiil,
may now be said to be established." *
To Aviculturists Mr. Swailes is well-known as a successful breeder of British
Birds in out-door aviaries.
Touching the distribution of Phylloscopus supcrci/iosus, Seebohm writes: — "The
breeding-range of the Yellow-browed Warbler is supposed to be confined to the
pine- forests of North-eastern Siberia, from the valley of the Yenesay eastwards to
the Pacific, and from the mountains of Lake Baikal northwards to the Arctic circle.
It passes through Mongolia and North China on migration and winters in South
China, Assam, Burma, and North-east India. Like some other Siberian birds which
winter in South-east Asia, a few examples appear more or less regularly to take
the wrong turning at Yeniseisk, and, instead of accompanying the main body of
the migratory species, which follow the course of the Angora through Lake Baikal
into the valley of the Amoor, join the smaller stream of migration, which flows
westwards into Persia and Europe."
In the spring the adult bird above is olive-green, the rump and upper tail-
coverts yellower ; wing- coverts, flights and tail-feathers brown, edged with olive-
green, the median and greater wing-coverts broadly tipped with greenish-yellow,
forming two distinct bands, the secondaries and several of the primaries tipped
with yellowish-white ; a greenish-yellow superciliary stripe which becomes whitish
behind the ear-coverts ; under-surface white, tinged with greenish-yellow, the axil-
laries, under wing-coverts, and thighs yellowish ; bill dark brown, feet brown, iris
hazel. After the autumn moult the colouring is brighter and yellower. Young
birds are greener and have a less defined eye-stripe than adults.
The home of this little bird is made in the pine-forests of N.E. Siberia, where
Mr. Seebohm found it very common, he describes its call-note as a plaintive wecst,
whereas Gatke says " This call has the sound of a somewhat long-drawn, softly
intoned ' hjiiph,' and somewhat approaches in character the call-note of Antlius
pratensis." \ However, it was reserved for Mr. Seebohm to be the first discoverer
of the nest of this interesting species on the 26th June, 1877 : — " As we were
walking along a little bird started up near us, and began most persistently to
utter the well-known cry of the Yellow-browed Warbler. As it kept flying around
us from tree to tree, we naturally came to the conclusion that it had a nest near.
We searched for some time unsuccessfully, and then retired to a short distance,
* One of the specimens recorded by Mr. Swailes has, since, been presented l)y him to the Natural
History Museum.
t I should judge that Gatke's rendering of bird-notes was more likely to be accurate than Seebohm's, and
''e (or more probably hiveeph) is likely to be a call-note, whereas wecst is certainly not. — A.G.B.
Vol. I. R
94 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
and sat down iipon a tree-trnnk to watch. The bird was very uneasy, but
continiialh- came back to a birch tree, from which it frequently made short flights
towards the ground, as if it were anxious to return to its nest but dare not whilst
we were in sight. This went on for about half an hour, when we came to the
conclusion that the nest must be at the foot of the birch tree, and commenced a
second search. In less than five minutes I found the nest, with six eggs. It was
built in a slight tuft of grass, moss and bilberries, semidomed, exactly like the
nest of our Willow Warblers. It was composed of dry grass and moss, and lined
with reindeer-hair. The eggs are pure white in ground colour, spotted very thickly
at the large end, in the form of an irregular zone, with reddish brown, and more
sparingly on the remainder of the surface ; some of the spots are underlying and
paler, but not grey, and on one or two of the eggs they are confluent. They
measure •6-inch in length and ■45-inch in breadth. The markings are well-defined,
like those on the eggs of the Chiffchaff"; but the colour is decidedl}' more like
that of the Willow Warblers."
Gatke says : — " The conditions which favour the passage of this bird to
Heligoland are an east wind, particularlj- a light south-east, and warm sunny
weather. After its arrival it frequents principally the few tree-like willow shrubs
in the gardens between the houses of the upper plateau (Oberland). It appears to
have a special preference for Salix sinithiania, for which reason I always cultivate
this species in my garden. It is hardly ever seen on S. caprca or on elders, but
likes high thorns and the greater maples (Acer pscudo-platanusj. In its manner of
hopping through the branches of these tree-like bushes and garden-shrubs it exactly
resembles the Chiifchaff and Willow Wren. In doing so, it does not, however,
make use of its wings for propelling itself, as the two last-named species do
incessantly, even when they do not require their wings for the purpose of fluttering
from one branch to another ; nor does this bird hop about in the unsteady, and to
all appearance, aimless manner of the latter birds, but progresses calmly and
gradually from the lower branches to the top of the tree or bush."
Mr. F. W. Frohawk writes: — "On the ist or 2nd of October, 1895, at 10
a.m., on one of those beautiful summer-like days we had during the last week of
September and first week of October, during our stay at West Buckland, S. Devon,
my wife (who is well acquainted with most of our native birds) told me she had
just seen, in the hedge surrounding the garden at the back of the cottage, some
little birds which were singing and were new to her, and was sure they were
something rare. I at once went to the spot and immediatel}^ heard the song of a
bird which was unlike anj'thing I knew, and directly afterwards saw a small
Warbler hopping from one twig to another in the hedge and taking short flights
The Yellow-Browed Warbler. 9S
of a few feet from one part of the hedge to another, generall}' alighting about
half way up, and then hopping to the top, and singing its little song repeatedly.
A short distance (only a few yards) away another was singing, and behaving in
the same way, and two others with precisely the same actions, but not singing,
were with them. All four were of the same species : they appeared to be as nearly
as possible, intermediate between a Gold-crest and Willow Warbler, so far as I
could make out the colouring : this was rather difficult to do, on account of viewing
the birds against the sky, as the hedge was on rather a high bank and they kept
on the outer side of the hedge. They were olive-greyish-green, or rather olive-
greenish-grey, with underparts lighter and a distinct pale stripe running from the
beak over the eye and beyond it ; the wings (basal half) appeared covered by the
side and flank feathers. They reminded me of the Gold-crest, but were not so
small or so fluffy, they appeared rather more trim in shape, but more plump in
proportion than the Willow Warbler. The song was well in keeping with the little
birds and I found no difficulty in noting it, as I repeated it time after time with
the birds (which appeared very tame) and by many repetitions I was satisfied I
hit it off accurately : this enabled my wife to set it to music, which will convey
the character of the birds simple, but merry and pleasing little song.
Scherzando. emp.
■6-4-
SOPHAKO.
■tf
Apparently these little strangers were on migration, as I saw nothing more of
them, although I searched the locality daily afterwards.
I have little doubt that these birds were Yellow-browed Warblers fPhylloscopus
superciliosusj ; if not, what were they ? I do not know if the song of this rare
little bird has been described, or if any Ornithologist is acquainted with it ; if so
the species might be identified with certainty. As well as I remember these birds
agreed in size and character with a drawing the late John Hancock showed me,
made by him from a specimen of the Yellow-browed Warbler which he shot many
years ago and which was the first British specimen : his drawing represented the
bird clinging to the flower-head or seeds of a plant, picking the insects from it,
and he said it looked so like a Gold-crest that he mistook it for that species ; but,
upon shooting it, found he had gained a prize.
I regret that I had no means with me at the time of securing a specimen
out of the four I met with, so as to remove all doubt of the species : I should
have had no difficulty in obtaining one or more, had I had my catapult at the
9^ British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
time ; this I find the best thing for collecting sixch birds as Gold-crests, as it
damages them so little, and these little birds were so tame that I could easily
have got one or two of them."
Since writing the above, Mr. Frohawk obtained skins of the Yellow-browed
Warbler for illustration on our plate of that species, and at once recognized them
as the species which he and his wife had seen ; thinking, however, that it would
be as well to make assurance doubly sure, he showed her the drawing for the
plate as well as the skins without making any remark ; and, directly she saw them
she said — "Why those are the same as the little birds which we saw hopping
about in the hedge in Devonshire." It is therefore clear that Mr. Frohawk was
not mistaken in his original opinion, and that these four specimens may be
confidently added to the list of Yellow-browed Warblers met with in Great Britain.
Faviily—TURDID^. Subfamily— SYLVIIN^.
The ChiffCiiAff
Phylloscopiis rti/us, BechST.
A PARTIALLY resident bird in mild winters in the warmer parts of Cornwall,
but by far the greater number migrates annually from our shores in October :
this species is, however, the first to return in the spring, its monotonous double
note being often heard by the middle of March.
The northward range of the Chiffchafif in Europe extends almost to the Arctic
circle and eastward to the valley of the Volga, southward to the shores of the
Mediterranean ; it is a regular winter visitor to Northern and North-eastern Africa
as far as Abyssinia, as well as to Arabia, Persia, Asia Minor, Palestine and Greece :
it is resident in the Canary Islands.
Chiffchaff
The Chiffchaff. 97
In Great Britain this species is probably most abundant in the south and
south-west of England, but it is fairly common in suitable localities throughout
England and Wales : in Scotland and Ireland it is less frequently met with and
much more local.
The adult Chiffchaff in spring plumage is olive-green above, the rump being
slightly yellower; the wing and tail-feathers are brown, externally edged with
green ; the flights narrowly tipped with white ; a pale yellow superciliary streak
which becomes white behind the ear-coverts ; the lores and feathers behind the eye
olive ; under surface of body white, slightly greyish on the breast and flanks, and
faintly washed throughout with greenish-yellow ; the axillaries, under wing-coverts,
and thighs yellow ; bill dark-brown, feet blackish-brown, iris hazel. After the
autumn moult the entire plumage becomes suffused with bufiish yellow. Young
birds are somewhat greener than adults and have the superciliary streak less
defined.
The song of the Chiffchaff, if such it can be called, must be familiar to
everyone who has been in the country, or certainly to all inhabitants of our
southern counties. In the spring it is well-nigh impossible to ramble anywhere
near to a wood without hearing its incessant chiff-chiff, chiff-chiff, chiff-chiff (never
chiff-chaff, as its name would lead one to expect) : yet, common as it is, the nest
of this bird is not by any means so easy to discover as one would suppose.*
But for its very inferior song, slightly smaller size, duller colouring, weaker
and more undulating flight, the Chiffchaff might readily be mistaken for the
Willow- Wren ; it is however far more a bird of the woods than the latter species,
often making its home in small clearings far away from the outskirts. Sometimes
however, the nest is built in small shaws or plantations where the undergrowth
is dense, and one nest in my collection was taken by my friend Mr. O. Janson
from a cavity in a steep bank just outside one of the Kentish shaws ; he was
searching for nests just ahead of me at the time and showed it to me in situ.
A very beautiful nest, which I illustrated as a frontispiece to my " Handbook
of British Oology," I found in course of construction on the top of a short mossy
stump almost buried in a large patch of dead coarse grass in a small clearing, at
the side of a woodland path some 500 yards from its entrance. The nest itself
was situated about twenty feet from the path (towards which its back was turned)
and was so interwoven with the surrounding dead grass that unless I had seen
the birds carrying materials to it, I should certainly never have noticed anything
* The nonsense that has been written about this bird saying chiff, cheff, chaff is only an evidence of the
fact that the English are even now an imaginative people (I believe this has been denied); take away the chaff
and I will admit that the second syllable is sometimes uttered, though I believe it is only a slip on the part of
the bird, thus :—" Chiff-chiff, chiff-chiff, chiff-cheff, chiff-chiff."
Vol.. I. S
98 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
to make me suspect its existence ; I marked the spot by treading a flint into the
edge of the path, and a week later again visited the spot, when finding that it
contained four eggs, I took it at once rather than risk the chance of its discovery
by someone else.
Lord Lilford's experience of the Chiffchaff's nest in Northamptonshire differs
somewhat from my Kentish experience of it ; he says that it "is hardl}^ to be
distinguished from that of the Willow- Wren, but is, I think, more often placed
at some height from the ground than is the case with that bird."
Judging from the nests which I have robbed, as well as those which I have
preserved, I should say that the majority of those of the Chiffchaflf were slightly
higher in proportion to their width and more contracted round the opening than
those of the Willow- Wren ; the outside also is perhaps more generally decked with
dead leaves in nests of the former than of the latter species ; but to be sure of
one's facts, one ought to be able to compare a large number of nests from different
counties.
The nest of the Chiffchaff is cave-like, or semi-domed, with a tolerably wide
opening ; the thickest portion of the structure is at the top, probably with a view
to protection against rain ; the walls are formed of coarse dead grass-stems inter-
twined with dead blades of grass, plant-fibre, rootlets, dead as well as skeleton-
leaves and spiders' cocoons ; the inside is lined with fine rootlets, horsehair and a
number of feathers carefully smoothed down. The number of eggs varies from
five to seven, the former being the usvial number ; in colour they are pure white,
though when not blown the yolk gives them a pink tinge ; * they are more or
less dotted or spotted, as a rule, with deep chocolate or pitchy markings ; but some-
times these spots are mixed with other larger ones of a sienna red colour, with
here and there a pale lavender shell spot. Sometimes the spots are chiefly
confined to the larger end, sometimes they form an unequal, oblique, and somewhat
vague belt across the surface, often they are evenly scattered over the entire egg ;
but in spite of all these little modifications there is never the slightest difiiculty
in recognizing, at a glance, the egg of the Chiffchaff, it is as characteristic as
that of the Lesser Whitethroat.
The food of this species consists of many kinds of small insects, their larvae,
and of spiders : it also feeds on elderberries and currants as soon as these are
ripe : it seeks its insect food chiefly in the trees, but does not scorn to snatch a
small beetle or spider from the ground, or to chase a gnat or fly in the air. Its
flight is verj^ undulating and not specially rapid.
* Eggs which have been partlj- incubated lose their purit}- of colouring, becoming somewhat creamy ; but
this is not a peculiarity of the Chiffchaff alone ; therefore to describe the egg as cream-coloured is not strictly
correct.
Willow-Warbler
The Willow-Warbler. 99
The alarm-note is said to be a i^'Iiit somewhat resembling that of the Willow-
Wren ; but is not this its call-note * and the other note tr-r-r (to which no title
has been applied) its alarm or scolding note ?
In his "Birds of Norfolk" Mr. Stevenson states, on the authority of Messrs.
Gurney and Fisher, that a low bush, frequently of furze, appears to be a favourite
locality for the nest of this species and that as many as four have been found in
such places within a few yards. I never knew the nest to occupy such a site in
Kent, but birds appear to vary their habits greatly to suit their surroundings.
I have not tried the Chiffchaif as an aviary bird ; but, unless it be intended
to breed it, when the furze-bush arrangement might be tried, I should hardly
think this species would pay for its keep : a few Willow- Warblers would be far
more pleasing in every way. On the other hand, there is no doubt that when
once accustomed to the usual soft food, the Chiifchaff would prove hardy enough
and its graceful actions would be pleasing, but I doubt if any human being could
long retain his senses, if compelled daily, for months together, to listen to the
everlasting chiff-cJiiff, chiff-chiff, chiff-chiff oi this little bird. Now and again as one
passes through a wood it is a pleasing change, as the triangle is in a concert ;
but imagine a concert going on for months consisting of no other instrument than
a triangle ; believe me, even that would be more pleasant than an everlasting
Chiffchaff 's song !
Family— TURDIDyE. Subfamily— SYL VII NyE.
The Willow- Warbler.
Phylloscopus trochilus, LiNN.
GENERALLY distributed during the summer and breeding throughout Western
and Central Europe, southwards as far as the Straits of Gibraltar, eastward
in Transylvania. It visits South Russia, Turkey, Greece, Asia Minor, Persia, and
* The little White-eyes (Zoslerops spp.J, which always remind me of the Willow-Wren on a small scale,
have a clear call-note — wheel.
loo British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Palestine in winter and on migration ; but it passes the winter chiefl}' in Africa
from the Nile south-westwards as far as the Cape, and south-eastwards to the
Transvaal and Natal. A few, however, winter in the South of France and Spain,
and a few pass the summer in N.W. Africa.
In Great Britain the Willow- Warbler is pretty generally distributed and
abundant, though in Cornwall, Wales and Ireland only locally common ; to the
Orkneys, Shetlands and Faeroes it is apparently a mere straggler.
This species is a much brighter and prettier bird than the ChiffchafiF: in
spring it is olive-green above with the rump yellower; the wing-coverts are olive-
brownish, with greener margins, the flights brown with narrow whitish tips ; and
yellowish outer webs ; tail feathers brown, with whitish inner and yellowish outer
edges ; a superciliary yellowish streak from the bill over the eye and ear-coverts :
under parts yellowish, the chin, centre of throat, abdomen and under tail-coverts
white ; the breast and flanks olivaceous yellow or olivaceous buff" ; the axillaries,
under wing-coverts and thighs yellow ; flights and tail below ashy-grey : bill brown,
darkest on the culmen, palest below ; feet greyish horn-brown, iris hazel. The
female nearly resembles the male. After the autumn moult the colouring, especially
in birds of the year, is so much more yellow, that a neighbour sent round to me
in 1894, to inform me that one of my Canaries had got loose and was flying about
my garden. I was much tickled when I caught sight of it, flitting about a privet
hedge at the back of my covered aviary, catching flies. The popular notion is
that every yellow bird is a Canary.
The Willow- Wren (so-called) reaches the south of England about the end of
March, or the first week of April, leaving this country again about the middle of
September. Soon after its arrival and for about a month prior to its departure it
may be daily seen in most suburban gardens : I generally see it regularly for a
week in April and during the latter part of July and beginning of August ; but
rarely, if ever, during the remainder of the year unless I go farther afield, to furze-
clad commons, copses, woods, plantations, or the more secluded parts of large
gardens.
I know of no bird more graceful and active than the Willow- Wren ; acrobatic
and confiding as a Coal-tit, yet with a more easy lighter flight and greater control
over itself when on the wing ; restless exceedingly, but most beautiful in all its
agile movements, whether it be seen clinging to the upright bars of an iron garden
archway, to the feathery spray of some conifer, or flitting with rapid undulating
flight in pursuit of some small winged insect : even when, on rare occasions, it
drops to the earth in pursuit of some coveted morsel, its Robin-like hop is in
keeping with its neat trim figure.
The Willow-Warbler. ioi
The song of the WilloAv- Warbler is somewhat shrill, but decidedly pleasing ;
it vaguel)^ reminds one of that of the Chaffinch, but the scale is irregular, being
more staccato ; though far less melodious it also bears a slight resemblance to the
song of the common Amaduvade Waxbill ; but differs, as a descending zigzag does
from a descending spiral, the notes sounding as if flung right and left.
The nest is frequently placed amongst grass on the ground, or in branches
close to the ground, and almost hidden by grass and nettles ; sometimes, however
it is foTind some feet above the ground, one which I took on the i6th June, 1881,
was built over two feet above the earth in a wild rose-bush in a large garden at
Tunstall in Kent; also in the "Zoologist" for 1878, Mr. E. P. P. Butterfield
states that in 1876 he observed a nest built between two rocks at a distance of three
feet, and another in 1878 in a clump of whins two feet from the ground ; but
probabl}' the greatest recorded altitude is that mentioned by Mr. iVlston, when the
nest was built in a hole in a wall nearly seven feet from the ground.
The nest in form is usually cave-shaped or semi-domed, the thickest portion
being at the top as in the nest of the Chiffchaff"; but in 1883, I obtained a very
abnormal cup-shaped nest which was built under a gooseberry bush in an orchard ;
the usual arched covering was rendered unnecessary from the fact that a large
clod of hard earth completely overhung the cup : in all probability this clod had
been accidentally flung over the nest when it was in course of construction and
the little architect instead of being scared away by the seeming misfortune, had
utilized it as a time-saver: this nest with its four beautifully spotted eggs is still
in my collection.
The nesting materials consist of dry grass, either coarse or fine, mixed with
fern, dead leaves or moss, and spiders' cocoons ; externally somewhat untidy in
appearance though firmly compacted : the lining consists of wool, hair, and plenty
of soft feathers, and has a neat and comfortable appearance.
The eggs vary in number from four to eight ; but five to six are more
usually found : they are pure white, rarely unspotted, sometimes finely speckled and
distinctly zoned round the larger extremity with rust-red, sometimes prominently
spotted irregularly with the same colour. Apart from their usually superior size,
the totally dissimilar colour of the spots would preclude the possibility of these
eggs being confounded with those of the Chiffchaff.
Towards the end of July, 1887, a young example of the Willow- Warbler was
brought to me by two lads of my acquaintance, it had flown into their parents'
house, probably in pursuit of flies. At first it was very wild, so I turned it into
a cage, about eighteen inches cubic measure, with a hand-reared Sedge- Warbler.
The following morning, as I was offering a fly to the latter bird, the Willow-
I02 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Warbler sprang over his back and snatched it from my fingers ; it had become
perfectly tame in thirty-six hours. I mentioned this fact to Dr. Glinther who
assured me that, such being the case, he was certain (from his own experience)
the bird would die in a day or two : he could not explain why it was so, but it
was an invariable rule that, if Warblers became suddenly tame soon after capture,
they never lived long. The following morning my Willow- Wren was sitting ruffled
up with its head under its wing ; but, after swallowing two caterpillars and two
house-flies, it appeared to recover its spirits and became as lively as at first. In
the afternoon my son offered it a fly, putting his hand into the cage and holding
the insect between his finger and thumb : the little bird flew down upon his hand
and took it, then hopped round pecking at his fingers. Half an hour later it
was found lying dead on the draw-tray of the cage.
In July, 1889, I trapped two Willow- Wrens in my garden and turned them
loose in an aviary sixteen feet long ; there they seemed happy enough catching
flies and spiders ; but they did not seem to understand the soft food, although they
must have seen other birds eating it : consequently they soon sickened and died :
since then I have not attempted to catch any others.
There is no doubt that, in order to get these little birds to eat the soft food,
the best plan would be to cage them up at first, giving them two food pans, one
half filled with small mealworms and filled up with the food, so that it would be
impossible for them to eat the living food without tasting the other ; the second
pan with soft food only, which they would be certain to peck over in search
for more insect larvae. The only alternative, and a risky and trying one at
best, would be to rear your Warblers from the nest ; but then, in all probability,
they would never sing.
Wood-Warbler
The Wood-Warbler. 103
Family— TURD ID ^. Sub/am ily—S YL VI IN^.
The Wood-Warbler.
Phylloscopus sibilatrix, Bechst.
AS regards the geographical distribution of this species on the Continent, I
cannot do better than quote Howard Saunders : — " The Wood-Wren has
not yet been proved to visit Norway, but it is found in Sweden as far North
as Upsala ; while it is very common in the Baltic Provinces, rarer in South
Finland, and a straggler to Archangel. Eastward it can be traced to Kazan,
the lower valley of the Volga, the Caucasus, and the western shore of the
Caspian. In Palestine, Asia Minor and Greece, it occurs on migration ; but it
breeds in Turkey, Transylvania, and Europe generally, although rarely in the
extreme south ; while in Portugal the bird seems to be almost unknown. It
appears probable that a few remain during the summer in the mountain forests
of the Atlas ; the winter migrations extending to the Gold Coast on the west
side of Africa, and to Abyssinia on the east."
In England it is generally distributed, breeding in many suitable localities ; it
is very local in Scotland, but in Ireland it is absolutely rare.
The Wood- Warbler is the largest British species of its genus, and has the
longest wings. The adult bird, which varies very slightly in colouring throughout
the year, has the upper surface yellowish-green, the rump and upper tail-coverts
being most yellow in tint ; the wing-coverts olive-green with the margins of the
feathers paler; the flights greyish-brown, externally edged with green and tipped
with whitish, the innermost secondaries with broader pale margins ; tail greyish-
brown, the outer webs greenish, and the inner webs pale greyish on the edges.
From the bill over the eye and beyond it is a broad sulphur-yellow superciliary
stripe. The under surface is pure white ; the chin, throat and breast suffused with
sulphur-yellow ; the axillaries, under wing-coverts and thighs are also yellow. Bill
dark brown, the lower mandible paler at the base ; feet brown ; iris hazel.
I04 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
The young bird is slightly more yellow than adults ; but the sexes are much
alike.
The Wood- Wren is rarely with us until towards the end of April, and in
September it commences its winter emigration : in its habits it is not unlike its
congeners, but is more exclusively a bird of the forests and the larger woods, than
of copses and plantations. Lord Lilford, in his "Birds of Northamptonshire"
says : — " So far as my experience goes of the Wood- Wren, or Wood- Warbler (as
this bird is, I think, more generally called) it is fond of woods of high trees,
especially of beech, beneath which there is little or no undergrowth with the
exception of occasional tufts of coarse grass in the scattered spots not actually
overshadowed by the spreading branches of the trees. In these and similar
localities we occasionally hear, about the beginning of May, a very peculiar note,
which is described by White, of Selborne, as ' a sibilous grasshopper-like noise :'
sibilovis it certainly is, but I can perceive' no resemblance in it to the cry of the
grasshopper. A good description will be found in the fourth edition of Yarrell ;
but even this fails to convey exactly the sound produced, though I certainly am
unable to improve upon it, and can only say that to my ear it has a certain
resemblance to the sound of the wings of wild ducks when flying overhead,
though, as stated by Yarrell, it begins slowly, and is more musical than any
sound produced by mere muscular action can well be. This song is accompanied
by a quivering of the wings, which are drooped during the performance."
Mr. Blyth described the song as " Twit, hvit, twit, tit, tit, tit, ti-ti-ti-i-i-i, begin-
ning slow, but gradually becoming quicker and quicker, until it dies away in a
kind of thrill ; " and Seebohm says : — " It might be expressed on paper thus — -
chit, chit, chit, chit, chitr, tr-tr-tr-tr-tr-tre. The final trill somewhat resembles the note
of the Grasshopper Warbler or the lesser Redpole, or the prolonged ' shivering '
part of the song of the Common Wren ; and during its utterance the wings and
tail, if not the whole body of the bird, vibrate with the exertion." Unfortunately
when I have heard the bird, I have been too eagerly engaged in search of its nest
to make notes respecting its song, or I would give my own rendering : memory is
a treacherous staff to lean upon, but so far as it serves me in this particular
instance, I should be inclined to accept Seebohm's rather than Blyth's version, as
not only appealing to my conviction of its greater accuracy as a reminiscence, but
as sounding less like a particularly irritating street song.
I have, several times, found the nest of this species in coarse grass-tussocks,
or amongst the dead leaves of a small branch, torn off" by the wind and half
hidden by grass and nettle ; always, however, in openings in beech or oak-woods,
and not far from the outskirts. Unfortunately I never secured any eggs of the
The Wood-Warbler. " 105
Wood-Warbler ; the nests which I found having either been only just completed,
or perchance plundered of their contents ; not, however, by country lads, or they
would have been torn out and destroyed.
The nest, like that of its congeners is semi-domed, and constructed of dead
grass mixed with leaves and occasionally a little moss ; it is lined with horsehair,
but never with feathers. The eggs number from five to seven and are pure white
more or less densely speckled, spotted or blotched with purplish brown and inter-
mixed with numerous shell-spots ; the markings are either scattered broadcast,
partly confluent so as to form irregular patches, or are partly collected into a
zone towards the larger end.
The food of the Wood- Wren consists principally of insects, their larvae, and
spiders ; but there is no doubt that it also eats elderberries when procurable.
The call-note has been described as dee-ur, dce-ur, but more probably the
sound is tcc-ur, though the call of the Starling certainly sounds like Joey dce-ur,
hee-ur: it is not easy to distinguish the d from the / sound in a whistled note.
Touching another sound uttered by this bird Howard Saunders writes : — " Sloping
wooded banks are favourite situations for the nest, which often is not merely on
the ground, but is actually set in some natural hollow, well concealed by herbage.
The hen at times sits very close : when fairly beaten out, she will feed in an
unconcerned manner, uttering a low pi-o for a quarter of an hour or more ; after
which she works round to a branch above her nest, drops down abruptly and
enters it in an instant."
Gatke says that the Wood- Warbler " visits Heligoland only in very isolated
instances, such few individuals as are met with being seen for the most part in
warm May days. During its autumn migration — from the middle of July to the
middle of August — the bird is much rarer."
As an aviary bird the Wood- Wren would doubtless be interesting, though
neither specially remarkable for bright colouring or vocal merit ; I should however
expect to find it just as difficult to accustom to a change of diet as the Willow-
Warbler. I am of opinion that the few examples of Phylloscopus which, from time
to time, appear at our bird-shows are invariably hand-reared, although Swaysland
speaks of them as being easily tamed ; and of the present species he observes
(Cassell's Cage-Birds) " If allowed to fly about the room, its first thought is the
selection of a perch ; when it has satisfied itself on this point, it will show great
expertness in catching the flies from off the walls and ceiling, always returning to
its favourite perch to eat them." Possibly my own want of success in keeping
the Willow- Warbler maj' have been due to the fact that my birds were captured
in July ; for it has been asserted that, for some unexplained reason, Warblers
io6 • British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
become more readily accustomed to captivit}' if caught ou their arrival in this
countr\- than just before or at the season of their departure. Not having captured
any Warblers in the spring months, I am quite unable to decide the point.
The two following birds should not, I think, be admitted as British ; each of
them having only appeared as an accidental straggler on three occasions : —
Family— TURD ID.^. Subfamily— SYL VIINAL.
The Rufous Warbler.
A'edoii galadodes, Temm.
A SOUTH European species, of which the first example was shot near Brighton
by Mr. Swaysland on September i6th, 1854; the second was an imperfect
specimen obtained in Devonshire, on September 25th, 1859 ; the third was also
obtained in Devonshire, on October, 12th 1876.
The Icterine Warbler. 107
Family— TURDID/E. Subfamily— S YL VIIN/E.
The Icterine Warbler.
Hypolais icterina, ViEILL.
A NORTHERN and central European species, of which the first example was
killed near Dover, on June 15th, 1848 ; the second in co. Dublin, on June
8th, 1856; the third in Norfolk, on September nth, 1884.
It is in the highest degree improbable that either of these species will fall
into the hands of any of the readers of the present work : should they have the
good fortune to meet with them I hope that, in the interests both of humanity,
and science they will not shoot them ; but, if possible, capture and study them
living. It is a melancholy fact that almost every rare bird which accidentally
wanders to our shores is doomed to be shot, for the mere satisfaction of labelling
it as British : the same individual, if shot in the land of its birth, would probably
be valued at a shilling or less.
We now come to the Reed- Warblers, whose suspended nests are often
taken and preserved as ornaments by mere admirers of the beautiful ; without one
thought of the little architects, or the faintest desire to know anything respecting
them.
^** British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Family— TURDID^. Stibfamily—S YL VIIN^E.
The Reed- Warbler.
Acrocephahis strcpcrus, ViElLL.
SEEBOHM states that, on the Continent, the Reed- Warbler "is found in
suitable localities in summer throughout Europe, south of latitude 58°, and
in Asia Minor, Palestine, South-west Siberia, Turkestan, Persia, Bahichistan, and
probably in Afghanistan. It is said to be a resident in Greece and the surround-
ing islands ; but it passes through North Africa on migration, and winters in
Central Africa."
In Great Britain this species is local, being very common in the Southern
counties, with the exception of Cornwall and the Scilly Islands ; it is also common
in suitable localities in Wales, Cheshire, and Yorkshire ; but local in Lancashire
and rare in Cumberland. In Scotland it is said to have occurred, and one example
has been recorded from Ireland ; but these statements reqiiire confirmation.
The Reed- Warbler above is olive-brown suffused with chestnut, more especially
on the rump and upper tail- coverts ; the innermost secondaries with pale margins ;
an ill-defined pale-buff superciliary stripe ; imder surface creamy- white, the breast,
flanks, and under tail-coverts rufous-buff ; bill dark horn-brown above, paler below,
feet slaty-brown, iris brown. The female nearly resembles the male ; both sexes
are slightly more rufescent after the autumn moult. The young are very tawny
on the under surface.
This species reaches Great Britain towards the end of April, and leaves again
in September.
Although, as its name implies, the Reed- Warbler mostly frequents reed-grown
dykes, ponds, or the edges of broads and rivers where reed and sedge abound ; I
have seen it also fairly abundant in marshy copses in Kent, and in gooseberry-
gardens in Norfolk ; but always in the vicinity of water : on the other hand Mr.
R. H. Mitford speaks of its nesting in lilac-trees in his garden at Hampstead. I
have three nests built in forks of hazel, the first of which is of the normal type,
and was given to me by the Hon. Walter de Rothschild, who obtained it at Tring ;
the two others were sent to me by Mr. Salter, from Salisbury, and decidedly
Reed-Warbler
The Reed-Warbler. 109
approach the nest of the Marsh-Warbler in character, as also do the eggs in one
of them ; in both the latter instances, the hazels were growing close to water. The
nest of this bird is most frequently suspended in reeds ; sometimes the attachment
is firm, sometimes loose ; the latter arrangement is adopted and the nest fastened
above a leaf when the level of the water shows great variation during the day ;
thus, when the water rises it raises the nest, which is built with an unusually
thick base, above the projecting leaves : this I have proved to be the case on
more than one occasion, and hence Swaysland's belief that the nests in the Brighton
dykes were constructed with this object has some justification, although in the
particular specimens which Mr. Seebohm examined most had a leaf projecting
close to the nest, both immediately above and below it on one or other of the
reeds, which would make any movement of the kind impossible. From two to
four reeds are employed for the suspension of the nest, the most frequent number
being three.
I shall not easily forget my first experience in taking the nest of the Reed-
Warbler : I had heard that the species was numerously represented among the
reeds which grow in abundance at Tong Mill in the village of Tong, near Sitting-
bourne. The mill and the adjoining plantation were at that time the property of
a Mr. Arthur Bennett, a large-hearted man who took an interest in Natural
History, so that I had no difficulty in obtaining permission to search for birds'
nests wherever I pleased.
When I approached the stream I could hear the Reed- Warblers in every
direction, but could only catch a glimpse of them from time to time as they
emerged for a moment from the densely clustered leaves. The reeds grew most
thickly near to the house ; but at this point the stream was very wide, and the
birds appeared to be chiefly in mid-stream ; so that I was at a loss to know how
I should reach their nests which I knew must be built at the time, although none
were visible from the bank.
Mr. Bennett now came to the rescue with a long ladder, which he dropped
across the reed-bed, the foot remaining upon the bank, and the top floating upon
the water, and partly supported by the broken-down plants. Upon this, grasping
bundles of reeds on either side, I was able to walk out for some distance, looking
right and left for nests as I went ; and, at the first essay I caught sight of a nest
about six feet away to the left.
Walking out on the rungs of a ladder, and depending for one's balance upon
flexible stems, whilst with every step the water rises an inch or two higher over
one's boots, is not the most enviable pastime ; although the slight discomfort is
more than atoned for, by the sight of the first nest of a species not hitherto met
Vol. I. U
no British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
with : the difficulty of this mode of progression is, however, by no means so great
as one would imagine ; but, when the nest is discovered, and it is necessary to
turn round and retrace one's steps, the task is by no means so easy.
Having noted the exact spot where my nest was situated, a second throw of
the ladder soon brought me within reach of it ; to my delight the clutch included
a Cuckoo's egg, but unhappily so much incubated that I made but a poor job of
preparing that nest for my collection ; however, I still have it. I obtained several
other nests with fresh eggs in the course of the morning ; but I have never since
adopted the same method for securing nests of the Reed- Warbler.
In Kent the birds are extremely common in the dykes, but the nests most
difficult to find ; indeed it is no uncommon thing to work carefully along half a
mile of dyke, hearing the weak and monotonous song the whole time and turning
aside the reeds with a long stick continuously, yet not finding a single nest ;
shortly afterwards, on reaching a reedy duck pond, with an old wooden box for a
boat, and a pole to scull it withal, one finds the nests easily enough. In the
reeds bordering the Norfolk broads there is no difficulty in obtaining nests, if one
rows close along the outer edge of the reed-belt ; also in the narrow dykes running
into some of the broads they may be found.
The nest is a strongly constructed, deep cup, formed of dry grasses and bents,
or the flowering tops of the reed, with sometimes a little moss and plenty of
cobweb ; the cup being lined internally with fine grassy fibre or horsehair.
The nests obtained by Mr. Salter were unusually large and compact, formed
of carefully selected stout grasses interwoven with some woolly substance (appar-
ently vegetable), and externally swathed tightly with stronger grasses : the first
sent to me contained four eggs, somewhat larger and more boldly marked than
most eggs of this species. I wrote to Mr. Salter asking him to try and discover
something further respecting it. On the 27th June, he wrote to me from Downton,
as follows : — " I will forward, per parcels post, to you, another nest like the one
you have. I found it last Saturday with three young birds and one egg. I went
again to-day and found the young ones just ready to fly. I managed to shoot
one of the old ones with a catapult, but could not manage to get the other,
although I waited about three hours. The nest was overhanging the water about
fifty yards from where I got the other."
The egg and birds forwarded with this second nest were quite normal, and I
regretted that specimens had been destroyed in order to prove the fact : however,
the birds have not died in vain, for one at least will be immortalised on the plate
accompanying this article.
The number of eggs in a clutch varies from five to six; they are dull
The Reed-Warbler, m
greenish-white, mottled, or streakily spotted with olive, and with slightly greyer
shell-markings ; the spots frequently collect in a dark zone round the larger end,
and are rendered richer by the addition of one or two black dots ; but, excepting
in the paucity or density of the markings, the eggs of this species vary very little ;
they always have a dull, blvirred appearance.
The music of the Reed- Warbler is very poor and weak, with very little
variation ; it sounds more like the clamouring of nestlings for food, than the love-
song of an adult bird ; it has the same querulous peevishness in its tones at times,
but especially when one is approaching the nest.
This bird nevertheless is by no means destitute of the power of mimicry.
My friend, Charles A. Witchell, in his fascinating book " The evolution of bird-
song," pp. 221-2, observes: — "A Reed-Warbler heard by me at Brimscombe, near
Stroud, imitated many times the cries of the Starling, including the common cry
of alarm (the cah employed as an alarm to the young) and the song of the Starling.
A pair of the latter species had a nest within ten yards of the singer ; hence I
was able to compare the imitations (which were excellent) with their originals.
The Swallow, Wagtail, and House-Sparrow were also abundantly imitated. The
Swallow's song was capitally rendered seven times successfully. Mr. H. C. Playe
informs me that he has heard numbers of these birds near Oxford, and that they
are good mimics."
The food of the Reed- Warbler consists chiefly of the numerous insects and
their larvae which abound upon the reeds and sedges, of spiders, small worms,
slugs, and, when they are ripe, of small fruits and berries. In captivity it would
probably eat the usual soft food ; but I should hardly think it would make a
specially interesting aviary pet.
112 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— SYLVHNAL.
The Marsh-Warbler.
Acrocephalus palustris, BechsT.
IN the summer this species occurs over nearly the whole of Europe south of
the Baltic ; and eastwards through Russia and Siberia to Turkestan and
Persia ; according to Seebohm its occurrence in Asia Minor and Palestine is
doubtful. It winters in Africa from the Nile probably to Natal.
In Great Britain the Marsh- Warbler is apparently ver}^ local ; the nest has
been recorded as taken near Bath, in Gloucestershire, in Cambridgeshire and Oxon.
I am satisfied that a nest which I found with only one &^% built in the reeds near
the margin of one of the Ormesby broads was a nest of this species, although
Ornithologists seem to be agreed that the Marsh- Warbler never frequents reeds,
but only swampy ground. The fact that this bird is a regular breeding species
near Taunton, in Somersetshire, was discovered through the acumen of Mr. Howard
Saunders ; the facts being as follows : —
An Ornithologist, a Dr. Woodforde, had a collection of birds, and Mr. Howard
Saunders, who was visiting Mr. Cecil Smith, was taken by him to see this
collection : amongst the specimens shown to him were a bird with nest and one
^%Zi which no one previously had been able to recognize, and which Mr. Saunders
identified as the Marsh- Warbler. No sooner was this fact made known than Mr.
Murray Matthew, then Vicar of Bishop's Lydeard, asked Mr. John Marshall, of
Taunton, if he could get old Coates, the birdcatcher (the discoverer of Dr. Wood-
forde's bird, nest, and ^%%, twenty years previously) to look about for a nest and
specimens of this species. Coates being then in Mr. Marshall's employ, went with
him in search of the nest : in this they were perfectly successful, so that Mr.
Marshall was able to distribute both nests and eggs among his friends : two of
these nests came into the possession of Mr. Seebohm ; who, curiously enough seems
to credit Mr. Cecil Smith with the discovery of the breeding of the species in
Taunton, not even mentioning Mr. Marshall's name : the illustrations of eggs of
this species in the present work are reproductions of careful coloured drawings
of some of Mr. Marshall's specimens.
Marsh-Warbler
The Marsh-Warbler. 113
The Marsh- Warbler is barely to be distinguished from the Reed-Warbler ; but
differs in its less rufous, more greenish- olivaceous colouring above; the feathers
of the wing with more defined pale borders, the under surface more yellowish in
tint, the feet brownish flesh-coloured ; iris hazel. As Seebohm observes : — " Some
English Ornithologists, who have never made the personal acquaintance of both
species, have almost refused to admit their distinctness. No doubt they are very
closely allied ; but in their song, habits, eggs, and geographical distribution, they
differ as much as a Blackbird differs from a Thrush."
Although it has been assumed, rather than proved, that the nest of this
species is never built in reeds ; it is admitted that it is suspended in the same
manner amongst nettles, figwort, the greater willow-herb, meadow-sweet, or low
bushes, usually close to the water : probably the Marsh- Warbler does prefer to
build in such situations, but either it is not botanist enough to know that it is
erring when it builds in a reed-bed, or the nest and egg which I found, but
foolishly trusted a youth to send me when the clutch was completed, was a verj^
aberrant one and a superb copy of a Marsh- Warbler's production.
Naumann (quoted by Seebohm) says : — " the nest is never placed over water —
not even over marshy ground. It is always btiilt over firm ground, though this is
generally somewhat moist, as it cannot help being on the bank of a stream, a
situation often chosen. But you can always reach the nest dryshod.* In the
lowlands I always found it near the large country houses, especially in the gardens
on the banks of the moats, which sometimes were filled with reeds, and frequently
contained very little vegetation. The nest was sometimes close to the water, but
often many steps away from it, in low bushes overgrown with reeds, or in a small
bush overgrown with reeds, nettles, and other plants. It is also said to be found
in the rape fields, generally in the ditches, seldom deep in the rape itself. The
Reed- Warbler often breeds near the Marsh- Warbler, sometimes in the same ditch ;
but the latter bird always builds in the herbage on the bank near the water, whilst
the former as constantly breeds in the reeds over the water. To this rule there
seems to be no exception. f The nest is generally from one to three feet from
the ground, very seldom nearer, and, I am told on the best authority, never on
the ground itself." "It is no use to look for the nest in the middle of dense
thickets, but only on their edges, especially in isolated little bushes close to the
borders of ditches and moats."
* The same statement has been made respecting the Sedge- Warbler, man}- nests of which I was only able
to obtain from a boat. — A. G. B.
t This is certainly not correct, for I have myself taken the nest of the Reed-Warbler built on moist
ground near the water. — A. G. B.
114 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
The nest of the Marsh- Warbler has been compared with that of the Grass-
hopper-Warbler which it is said greatly to resemble ; it is formed of dry rounded
grass-stalks, sometimes intermixed with dead grass-leaves, vegetable fibre and
cobweb, and lined with finer grass, black horsehair and sometimes a little moss.
The eggs vary in number from five to seven; in colouring they are pale blue-
greenish, or greenish-white, spotted, blotched and streaked with olive-brown, often
with darker central spots and with violet-grey shell-spots.
The song of this species is said to be far superior to that of the Reed-
Warbler; Gatke hints at its resemblance to that of the Icterine- Warbler, but
Seebohm says that it recalls that of the Swallow, the Lark, the Tree- Warbler, the
Nightingale, and the Bluethroat : " not so loud as that of the Nightingale, but
almost as rich and decidedly more varied." * If this is a correct description, the
Marsh- Warbler should be greatly sought after as a pet.
Mr. Warde Fowler, in his " Summer Studies of Birds and Books," pp. 78-79,
thus describes the discovery of the Marsh- Warbler's nest in Switzerland: — "At
the end of the long street which leads towards the Lake of Brienz, we passed out
into a spongy-looking and reedy tract, lying between the river Aar and some
cultivated ground — ^just in the same position as the haunt of the Marsh- Warbler
at Meiringen. Here I proposed that we should follow a footpath which ran along
the river-side, and seemed likely to lead us to some bits of scrub and wild ground
which we could see about a quarter of a mile ahead. This scrub turned out to
consist of some kind of low-growing willow, with ditches and hollows overgrown
with long grass and meadow-sweet. My friend plunged into it, while I went on a
little further. Almost directly he called me back, and by the waving of his
umbrella I saw that he had made some discovery. It was indeed a discovery, it
was the nest of a Marsh- Warbler. There was the nest, and there too was the
bird, which continued to creep about the neighbourhood of the nest for some
minutes after we had disturbed her. There were four eggs in the nest, the beauty
of which will always dwell in my memory. They were of the same type as the
Reed- Warblers, but instead of being densely covered with greenish spots, their
ground colour was greenish-white, with many largish dull purple blotches, gathered
chiefly at the thicker end. The nest too was specially distinct from that of our
familiar Oxford bird ; it was of a slighter make, and not so deep, bixt the stalks
of the meadow-sweet had been drawn into its structure, much as the reeds or the
shoots of privet or lilac are used in the nest of the Reed- Warbler. It is worth
* Mr. W. W. Fowler speaks of its imitating the Tree-Pipit, Lark, Swallow, Sedge- Warbler, Nightingale,
Chaffinch, Nuthatch, Great-Tit, White-Wagtail, &c., and he says that it sings best from six till ten in the
morning. A charming paper on the Marsh-Warbler's nesting habits appeared in the Zoologist, 1896, p.p., 286-288.
The Marsh-Warbler. 115
noting that the few nests of this species which have been so far found in England,
have been usually suspended in meadow-sweet ; and also that they have never, so
far as I know, been found immediately over water, but at a little distance from
it, and not very far from cultivated ground. We took one egg only, and after
some further search returned to the village, and went on our way to Meiringen,
where we were to sleep that night."
I do not doubt that the usual habit of the Marsh- Warbler is, to build its
nest above moist ground and not over water ; but to anyone who has nested year
after year for any considerable period, the fact that there is no rule without
exceptions is found to be especialty true in relation to nesting sites. It is most
unusual for a Spotted Flycatcher to build in a hole in a wall, and for a Wren to
form its domed nest in a box, yet I have obtained the former and my friend Frohawk
the latter. That the Marsh -Warbler therefore should occasionally follow the habit
of its very close relation the Reed- Warbler, is no more than might be expected.
The food of the Marsh- Warbler consists largely of insects and spiders, but it
also eats elderberries and small fruits in their season.
The Marsh-Warbler is said to reach its breeding-grounds about the middle
of May, and to leave them late in August. Herr Gatke, speaking of it in Heligo-
land, says : — " This species * * * was in former years met with far more frequently
in Heligoland than is the case now. As regards numbers, too, it was far better
represented than the preceding species (the Reed- Warbler) — a relation which
obtains even at the present day in regard to the few individuals still visiting the
island."
" Further, before the period under consideration, the spring and summer
months were almost invariably fine and warm, with a prevalence of south-easterly
winds, so that in April and May of almost every year the island used to teem
with Sylviee and other small birds ; indeed there were many days on which one
might have been able to secure more than a hundred Bluethroats (^Sylvia suecicaj,
and some twenty or more examples of S. hypolais and 5. palustris. Since then, on
the other hand, our spring and summer is almost always cold, with raw and dry
winds from the north, and the number of these Sylviee, and of other both smaller
and larger species which put in an appearance at these seasons, has dwindled to
the slenderest proportions, so that now the two last named species are seen perhaps
not more than twice or three times in the course of a spring migration."
Although I have not heard of this species having been exhibited as a cage-
bird in England, it is recorded among the species sent to the sixth exhibition of
the "Omis" Society in Berlin. Mathias Rausch, in the " Gefiederte Welt" for
1 89 1, in an exhaustive article on the European Song-birds, states that this bird
ii6 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs
is very prolific in imitations of the songs of other species, frequently even more
versatile than the Icterine Warbler, though in strength of voice, in purity and
flute-like character of tone, it stands a good distance behind it. Probably Herr
Rausch bases his remarks chiefly on wild specimens ; but it is quite possible that
he may also have heard them in captivity.
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— S YL 1 7/N^.
The Great Reed-Warbler.
Acrocephalus turdoides, Meyer.
According to Seebohm, the only satisfactorily authenticated instance of the
occurrence of this species in our islands is one shot near Newcastle on the
28th May, 1847, by Mr. Thomas Robson. Howard Saunders, however, evidently
believes in three other British killed specimens, one shot near Wingham in Kent,
on September 14th, 1881, one near Ringwood, Hampshire, on June 3rd, 1884, and
one shot near Sittingbourne in Kent, at some unknown date : he also believes in
the existence of a specimen which frequented the Norfolk broads.
As the species breeds annually at Calais, and is common both in Holland and
Belgium, Mr. Saunders considers it a marvel that its visits to our shores are so
rare. At best this can only be regarded as a casual wanderer to Great Britain.
Sedge-Warbler
The Sedge-Warbler.
"7
Family— TURDIDAL.
Subfamily— SYL VIIN^E.
The Sedge-Warbler.
Acrocephalus phragniitis, Bechst.
OCCURS in Norway up to lat. 70°, in Sweden and North Russia to lat. 68°,
and in the valleys of the Obb and Yenessay to lat. 67°. Southward it
breeds in North-west Turkestan, Palestine, Greece, and Central Italy, but in the
South of Europe generally it is only known as a migrant, though it is believed
that it sometimes breeds in Spain and the South of France : throughout the rest
of Europe it is pretty generally distributed, and abundant in suitable localities.
It visits Algeria and Egypt in the winter, passing thence to Damara-Land and
the Transvaal : it also seems probable, from the fact that Dixon shot the species
in May in Algeria, that a few examples remain to breed there.
In Great Britain the Sedge- Warbler is more or less abundant everywhere,
excepting perhaps on the Shetlands ; it is however somewhat local in the extreme
north.
Far more strikingly coloured than the Reed- Warbler, this well-known species
has a general resemblance to hens of the Orange Weaver-bird fPyromelana francis-
canaj : the general coloiiring of the upper parts is golden-brown, with black centres
to the feathers ; but on the head the feathers would be more accurately described
as black, with lateral brown borders ; on the rump and upper tail-coverts they are
cinnamon reddish, without black centres ; the secondaries are blackish with broad
clear golden-brown borders ; the primaries smoky-grey, narrowly and more or less
distinctly edged at the tips with whitish ; tail feathers blackish, with whitish
margins ; a distinct broad pale buff superciliary streak ; lores and ear-coverts smoky
brown ; chin and throat white ; centre of abdomen whitish ; remainder of body below
buff; upper mandible blackish-brown, lower mandible yellowish horn-brown, darker
towards the tip ; feet pale brown ; iris bright hazel. The female is slightly duller
than the male, and the reddish colouring of the rump and upper tail-coverts is
less pronounced. Young birds have the breast transversely spotted with smoky
brown.
The Sedge- Warbler appears at its breeding haunts towards the end of April,
or the beginning of May, and leaves us again in September or October. Although
Vol. I.
X
ii8 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
not always strictly confined to sedges and reeds, it is almost invariably to be
found in the neighbourhood of water ; * thus in Kent I met with it in numbers
in a plantation which was frequently converted into a marsh by the overflow of a
mill-stream, and in Norfolk, in lanes within a stone's-throw of the broads. With-
out question the best and most likely situations in which to look for the nest are
in reeds and sedges, or in willows or hawthorns overhanging the water : and here
I feel constrained to contradict a statement which has been made, respecting the
situation of the nest, by several excellent observers and well-known Ornithologists.
Seebohm and others assert that the nest of this bird " is never suspended between
the reeds like the Reed- Warbler's, but is supported by the branches " ; yet of the
many nests which I took on the Ormesby broads in 1885 and 1886, nearly all
were suspended precisely like those of the Reed- Warbler, several reeds being
interwoven loosely into the walls of the nest, which was placed above the junction
of a leaf in at least one of the said reeds. As seen from our boat, it would have
puzzled the keenest observer to say to which species the suspended nest belonged,
though a glance at the eggs at once settled the question.
Sometimes the nest is built in a hawthorn hedge, sometimes in nettles
at the foot of a hedge ; and all those which I have discovered in the marshy
plantation (part of which, when under water, was converted into a thousand
tiny islets formed by the roots, and was most awkward to cross) were built
amongst brambles, precisely in such a situation as would be chosen by the
Garden-Warbler.
For many years I collected eggs, without troubling to take the nests, but
eventually the importance of studying the variation of nests as well as eggs became
impressed upon me, and during the few years in which I acted upon this convic-
tion, I obtained amongst others some thirty or forty nests of the present species,
from which I was able to select eleven fairly well-defined distinct types for my
permanent collection, and an extremely pretty series they make, varying from a
stoutly built structure of twigs, grass-stalks, feathers, wool, horsehair, and fibre,
fully an inch and a half thick, to the flimsiest little fabric of goose-grass, fibre,
wool, and the flowering heads of reeds : some nests seem to be made entirely of
fine grass-stems, and much resemble those of the Greater Whitethroat, others are
more like those of the Blackcap, and others again are almost sparrow-like in their
untidiness and in the careless use of white feathers in the walls, though scarcely
so in form, f
* I have taken the nest as far as a hundred yards or more distant from water.
t I have a nest of the Honse-Sparrow taken from a Sand-Martin's burrow which is not much unlike this
type, even in form.
The Sedge-Warbler. "9
As a rule the nest is deep and compact, constructed of dry grass, with a stalk
or leaf of reed intertwined, also rootlets and very rarely a little moss ; lined with
black horsehair, soft feathers, and sometimes a little wool.
Although, as a rule, the ground-colour of the eggs of this species does not
vary much more than in those of the common Partridge, some eggs are very heavily
mottled with olive-brown ; their number is from four to six, five being the
almost invariable number for a complete clutch : the ground tint is either greyish,
buflfish, or brownish stone- colour, and when mottled or zoned at the larger end, it
is with a much deeper shade of nearly the same hue, amongst which, in the
heavily mottled variety, are spots of a more slaty colour : but, whatever character
the eggs assume, they almost always show one or more fine scribbled black lines
at the larger end, in character somewhat similiar to those which characterize
Bunting's eggs.
The Sedge-Warbler, like its allies, feeds largely upon insects, their larvae,
small worms and slugs ; in the autumn it is said also to eat elderberries.
The song of this species, as a rule, is somewhat similar to that of the White-
throat ; it occasionally far excels the performance of that bird, as I shall presently
show : it is most industriously persevered in, and although the Sedge- Warbler is
somewhat shy and skulking in its habits, I have often seen it, when startled, rise
singing above the sedges, and even alight and sing for a minute or so in full
view ; but generally it follows the rule that little birds must be heard and not
seen : the alarm-note is probably a modification of the cry of the young for food,
churr, chiich-uch-tuh-uch-churr ; a very common call among the smaller birds : the
actual call-note I have not heard or have forgotten it ; probably it is a soft
pleasing whistle.
In July, 1887, I went down to see a brother Naturalist, Mr. Edward A. Fitch,
of Maldon, in Essex, and we discovered upon an island on his property a nest of
the Sedge- Warbler, containing four young birds, in a blackthorn bush. The
mother bird slipped off the nest into the neighbouring bushes at our approach, but
the cock bird which was singing in one of the bushes continued his performance,
the finest I ever heard from this species : Mr. Fitch was certain that no Sedge-
Warbler could produce such a song, and expressed his firm conviction that the
nest was that of the Blackcap, but I knew the nests of both species far too
intimately to be deceived.
Seeing that the nestlings were ready to take, I determined to try my luck
at rearing them ; but, before I could put my hand over the nest, all the young
scuttled out into the bushes, and both parents made their appearance in great
wrath and scolded lustily ; ultimately we secured two of the young. At first these
I20 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs
little birds proved extremely difficult to feed ; as, for two days their mouths had
to be forcibly opened for every mouthful, and had not my host's kind-hearted wife
voluntarily assisted in feeding them, I should have been kept a close prisoner
during the two or three days of my stay. After the second day the young birds
became reconciled to their foster parent and opened their mouths readily enough.
At first they had hard-boiled egg and moistened breadcrumbs, but after I
reached home I gave them the same mixture upon which I had, that year,
successfully reared Nightingales, and this they seemed greatly to relish : they
were always hungry, yet grew very slowly. At the end of three weeks one of
them died, but the other was completely reared ; he was wonderfully tame, and
whenever I entered the little greenhouse in which his large cage stood, he would
fly down to the door and begin jumping up and down like an excited child,
sometimes springing at the wires and bumping his breast against them in his
eagerness to get some fly or mealwonn which he spied in my hand.
I used to open the door, put my hand in and he would hop on to it and
snatch the insect or larva from between my finger and thiimb : he was a pretty
little fellow and I grew very fond of him ; but I am afraid, as is often the case
with pets, that he was too well fed for his health, for on September 2nd, after
completing his autumn moult, he had an apoplectic fit and died. In all probability,
had this bird lived for years in captivity, he would never have siing a note ; for
I do not at all believe the parent's song heard only for the first eight or nine
days of his life, would have been remembered, and I do not think the songs of
the Warblers are inherited : they are heard and learnt by imitation either here or
during the winter, after migration.
Aquatic Warbler
The Aquatic Warbler. wr
Fam ily— TURDID^. Subfamily— S YL VIlNAi.
The Aquatic Warbler.
Acrocephalus aquaticiis, GmEL.
ALTHOUGH this appears to be only a chance straggler to our shores, it is
by no means an uncommon bird in France, and it is quite likely that, but
for its close resemblance to the Sedge- Warbler, many more instances of its occur-
rence in Great Britain would have been recorded. It is therefore important that
the present species should be admitted into the British list, so that all observers
may be on the look-out for it. Its geographical distribution, according to Seebohm,
is as follows : — " It has never been found north of the Baltic, and is only known
to pass through Spain on migration. It is a regular, though local, summer
migrant to France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, and South Denmark. South
of the Danube it is only known to pass through on migration, a few remaining
during the winter in Greece and Asia Minor. In South Russia Goebel found it
rare in the valley of the Dnieper ; and Nordmann once obtained it at Odessa in
spring. Bogdanow did not meet with it either on the Volga or in the Caucasus ;
but Meves found it abundant in the marshes of the Southern Ural, which, so far
as is known, is its eastern limit. It is said to winter in the Canary Islands, and
in various parts of North Africa ; but our information respecting its winter quarters
is very meagre. There is no doubt that a considerable number remain to breed
in Algeria and Tunis."
In Great Britain the Aquatic Warbler has been shot at Dover ; at Hove, near
Brighton; and at Loughborough, in Leicestershire: it was also represented in
"Hunt's British Ornithology" in 1822.
The upper surface of the Aquatic Warbler is tawny-brown, the forehead
reddish-buff; a huffish- white superciliary stripe from the base of the bill almost
to the nape ; the crown above this stripe blackish-brown, divided down the centre
by a stripe of buff; feathers of nape and back black-striped, and all the remaining
feathers excepting the quills black-centred ; lores and ear-coverts pale-brown ; under
surface of body buff, paler in summer ; the flanks (which are more distinctly buff)
the neck and lower throat more or less striated. Bill dark-brown above, paler
Vol.. I. Y
122 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
below ; feet yellowish horn-brown ; iris hazel. After the autumn moult the plumage
becomes more fulvous.
The Aquatic Warbler is a bird of the swamps, haunting the sedges and
smaller patches of reeds in dykes, ponds, the margins of lakes or rivers : like the
Sedge-Warbler it is a timid skulking bird, always ready to drop out of sight into
the sedges at the least alarm ; like that bird also it does not confine itself strictly
to aquatic vegetation, but is also found amongst wild and tangled scrub and thorn.
It is said that this bird never hops, but runs almost like a mouse ; it is
extremely active like all the other Reed- Warblers ; its song though somewhat like
that of the Sedge- Warbler is inferior in tone, length, and execution.
The nest, according to Naumann is never situated amongst reeds over the
water, but is usually placed in a bunch of sedge, or some other aquatic plants
about a foot or less above the ground, or in dwarf thorn or willow overgrown
with rank herbage ; it is suspended from the stalks or twigs of the growth in
which it is situated, and these, as with the Sedge and Reed- Warbler's nests, are
interwoven with the walls. In appearance the nest- much resembles that of A.
phragmitis, but is said to be slightly smaller ; * in its materials it doubtless varies
quite as much ; but the basis of the nest, as with that species usually consists of
dry grass and rootlets, and the inner lining is said to be invariably finished ofi"
with horsehair.
The eggs number from four to five, and are indistinguishable from those of the
commoner species.
The breeding season begins about the middle of May, and fresh eggs are
obtainable before the end of that month.
Herr Gatke makes the following interesting remarks respecting the Aquatic
Warbler in his " Birds of Heligoland " : — " The distribution of this species
as a breeding bird is scarcely as yet ascertained to its full extent ; at any rate, the
conditions under which it makes its appearance here are not in harmony with the
statements made in regard to its breeding area. The nesting stations cited for this
species are Algiers, Italy, France, Germany — especially the west — Holland, and in
solitary instances in Sleswick-Holstein, and Denmark.
From the frequent, and in one case at least, very numerous appearances of
young birds during the autumn migration, and their complete absence in the
spring — I have only once obtained a bird in April — we may with safety conclude
that, so far as Heligoland is concerned, the species is a far Eastern one. This
conclusion received considerable support from the fact that, on the 13th of August
* But, as the nest of the Sedge-Warbler varies in diameter from 3J to nearly 5 inches, the comparison is
not of much value.
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The Grasshopper Warbler. 123
1856, when these birds appeared here in unprecedented numbers, another species
from Eastern Asia was taken — viz. Sylvia certhiola. Again, diiring September 1876,
when several individuals of 5. aquatua were seen and shot here, a very strong
migration of eastern species took place. Thus, on the 4th, 6th, and 15th, and
daily from the last date to the end of the month, Anthus richardi occurred in
numbers from five to twenty; on the 22nd two examples of Anthus cervinus and
one of Motacilla citreola ; on the 25 th two examples of 5. aquatica were shot, and one
example each day of S. superciliosa on the 26th, 29th, and 30th. Similar occur-
rences were repeated in the course of October."
Herr Mathias Rausch, in his article on European Song-birds, mentions this
species with others, as " not prominent as singers, and for that reason not particu-
larly beloved and in demand as cage-birds." At the same time, it must be
remembered that numbers of little tropical birds, in no respect remarkable for
song, and certainly no more beautiful in colouring than the Aquatic Warbler, are
to be found in almost all bird- rooms : moreover somewhat high prices are paid
for the species of White-eyes fZosteropsJ and their only recommendations are their
pretty quiet colouring and graceful activity.
Family— TURDIDyE. Subfamily— SYLVIIN/E.
The Grasshopper Warbler.
Locustella ncevia, BoDD.
NOWHERE common, though in suitable localities not so rare as its shy
disposition would lead one to imagine, this species appears to be generally
distributed over Western Europe, and eastward as far as Transylvania, and South-
western Russia ; northwards its range extends to St. Petersburg. In Italy it is
124 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
rare ; but in Spain, onl}' in the summer ; it is believed to winter in Morocco and
Algeria.
In Great Britain it is prett}' generally distributed throughout England and
Wales ; in Ireland it is somewhat local, breeding chiefl}' in the eastern and
southern counties ; in Scotland south of the Firth of Forth it breeds in varying
numbers.
The colouring of this species above is olivaceous-brown, each feather with a
dark centre, least conspicuous on the sides of the neck and the longest upper
tail-coverts ; quills and tail feathers brown, with their outer webs olivaceous towards
the edge ; the tail faintly barred ; under surface pale buffish-brown ; the chin, centre
of abdomen and imder tail-coverts almost white ; the neck and breast- feathers with
darker centres, and the under tail-coverts with brown shaft-streaks : bill dark brown
above, paler below ; feet pale brown ; iris hazel. The female closely resembles the
male ; but young birds are more tinged with buff on the under surface than
adults.
Every writer on British Birds informs us that this bird owes its name to the
resemblance which its song bears to the chirrup of the grasshopper ; but Macgil-
livray correctly says: — "The note, if once heard, can never be afterwards mistaken
for the sound of a grasshopper or cricket, however striking the resemblance ;
besides, the length of time for which it is continued, provided the bird be not
disturbed, is much greater. Thus, on one occasion, while watching some pike
lines by the margin of a deep pool, I heard the trill of the grasshopper chirper
emitted from a neighbouring hedge for at least twenty minutes, during which time
the bird appeared to have been sitting on the same spot."
As Seebohm observes, the song " is a rapid trill, absolutely monotonous, and
is continued from a quarter of a minute sometimes to a couple of minvites without
cessation " : this is not characteristic of the tizzik, tizzik, tizzik of a grasshopper ;
indeed the note of the bird merely suggests that of the insect, it does not
greatly resemble it.
The Grasshopper Warbler haunts copses and plantations where there is dense
and rank undergrowth, untrimmed hedgerows, and ditches overgrown with coarse
grass, nettles, &c. ; also gorse-clad commons, heathery moors, and bushes in marshj'^
land, but rarely reeds. The nest is usually concealed in a thick tuft of rank grass,
and so deep down that, on the only occasion when I flushed the bird (which was
early in my birdsnesting daj's) I failed to discover it : consequently I am indebted
to the Rev. W. Bree, of Coventr^y, for the ^%^ of this species. Sometimes the
nest is placed in the bottom of a grass}' ditch, on railway banks, or under whin-
bushes.
The Grasshopper Warbler. 125
When disturbed, either from the nest or from cover, this shy bird is only
seen for a moment, it disappears like a mouse ; or, in some cases, like a stone ;
dropping from its perch into the undergrowth, through which it rapidly glides
away. In Mr. A. W. Johnson's notes, quoted by Seebohm, we read : — " The sitting
bird usually flies off the nest very quietly when flushed, and drops into the under-
wood at once. One instance, however, came under my notice, where the bird flew
up and over some tall trees ; and if the eggs are hard sat, or the nest contains
young, the bird comes stealing back in and out amongst the grass like a mouse,
and will approach within a few yards."
Mr. Howard Saunders says that neither Mr. A. H. Evans nor he have noticed
the mouse-like action of this bird when flushed from the nest ; but I was specially
struck with it on the one occasion when I ought to have found the nest, and once
again in a wood in the Stockbury Valley, in Kent, when I burst suddenly into a
clearing, almost stepping on the male bird, which was uttering its creaky song in
a bush just ahead of me : I wasted much time then searching all around for a
nest, which I never found.
The nest is a deep compact cup formed of moss, dry grass, and a few dead
leaves, with an inner lining of finer grass : the eggs which number from four to
seven are pinky-white, speckled with blood-reddish brown, and with greyer shell
spots ; sometimes the spots are enlarged, so as to form a zone towards the larger
end, occasionally they are interspersed with short Bunting-like hair lines of dark-
brown ; and, very rarely, they are diffused and merged, so as to form a xmifonn
pale brownish tint over the whole egg.
The alarm-note of the Grasshopper Warbler is said to be tic, tic, or tic, tic, tac ;
more probably tzic, tzic : but — Is it the alarm-note ? Surely, when a bird is flushed
from its nest, it must feel frightened ; but I believe most, if not all, observers
who have disturbed the Grasshopper Warbler when sitting, coxild echo Seebohm's
words — " We never heard her utter a note." I am certain that the greatest
confusion exists respecting the call and alarm-notes of wild birds in the accounts
given by even the best observers, and when a good man mistakes the intention
and meaning of a note, every subsequent writer follows his lead.*
The food consists chiefly of insects, their larvae, and spiders, but it is possible
that in the autumn it may also eat soft berries and small fruits.
Sometimes the Gi'asshopper Warbler is double-brooded, the first nest being
* I remember bein;; amused one day, when looking tliroujjh a work b}- an eminent Ornitholoj^ist, and
reading his account of I.iothrix lutetis, to come across the statement that "its call-note is a harsh chattering;"
the fact being that the chattering indulged in by both sexes is simply scolding; the call-note of the male being
a short and very musical song, of from .seven to nine notes, and that of the female a single clear resonant
whistle repeated four times.
126 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
usually completed about the second week of May, and if a second is built it is
generally ready for eggs towards the end of July. Nests have frequently been
found with fresh eggs about the middle of June, but it would seem probable, in
such cases, that some mischance had befallen the first nest.
Lord Lilford gives an amusing account of his search after this bird and its
nest ; he says : — " The only close observations of this bird which I have hitherto
been able to carry out, were made in the early summer of 1856, on a rough piece
of furze and thorn-grown grazing-land adjoining Dartmoor in North Devon : there
I found the bird very common. I should say that there must have been at least
six or more pairs frequenting an area of perhaps twenty acres, but in spite of their
abundance and constant song, it was only by close watching in the early morning
that I was able to procure specimens for my collection ; the male bird at that time
will now and then creep out to the top of a furze-bush " reeling " or singing, and
if undisturbed perhaps remain for a minute or more, but on the slightest alarm
will disappear into the thickest covert he can find, and run like a mouse through
the most tangled herbage from one thicket to the next, never taking wing unless
absolutely forced to do so. In vain did we search for a nest, though, armed with
a bill-hook, and protected by garden- gloves, we plunged into masses of thorns,
furze, nettles, thistles, and other defensive vegetation into which we had after
patient watching traced one of these birds, tearing up the grass by handfuls,
lopping away live and dead furze, on hands and knees, morning, noon, and evening;
day after day we went home with perforated skins, perspiring and unsuccessful."
Birds of Northamptonshire, vol. i, p. 123.
I could not resist quoting this ; it is so true an account of the discomforts to
which the zealous birdsnester cheerfully submits ; and, after all, I am not sure
that part of the joy of this branch of collecting does not consist in the successful
battling through thorns and briars, even though, after the fray, you return home
with both clothes and skin in rags.
As a cage bird I should not recommend this species.
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Savts Warbler • 127
Family— TURDID^. Subfamily— SYL VIINAL.
Savi's Warbler.
Locustella luscinioides, Savi.
SAVI'S WARBLER is a witness to the unquestionable fact— that no Wild
Birds Protection Act which does not forbid the reclaiming of so-called waste
land, will avail to hinder the rapid decrease of our British Avifauna ; interference
with the liberty of Britons will not affect it one iota : most of our interesting birds
are doomed, sooner or later, to banishment ; for they will only breed in their
accustomed haunts ; and where the proper conditions, to which they are used, cease
to exist, they will not remain. So long as gardens remain we shall probably
retain some of the commoner species, such as the Thrushes, the Robin, Hedge-
Accentor, and Tits, the Garden Warbler, Spotted Flycatcher, and a few others ;
but the birds of the fens, marshes, moors, and forests, must eventually recede
before the steady increase of bricks and mortar.
This marsh-loving bird is found in the larger reed-beds of South Russia,
Austria, Ital}^ Holland, the south of France, Spain, North Africa, and Palestine :
in the delta of the Rhone, and in North Africa it is probably a resident species,
but in its more northern haunts it is a migrant.
In Great Britain Savi's Warbler has probably become extinct ; between the
years 1843 and 1856 a good many specimens, together with nests and eggs of this
species, were obtained ; but the last British example was shot on Surlingham
broad, on June 7th, 1856, and passed into the collection of Henry Stevenson, the
well-known author of the " Birds of Norfolk." The fens of Norfolk, Cambridge,
and adjoining counties were previously resorted to by this rare little bird.
The upper surface of Savi's Warbler is russet-brown ; flight- feathers slightly
darker; tail-feathers with slight indications of transverse bars ; under parts brownish-
buff; the throat and centre of abdomen white; under tail-coverts redder, with
slightly paler tips ; bill dark-brown above, paler below ; feet pale brown ; iris
hazel. The young are described as less rufous above and paler below than adults.
Mr. Stevenson states that the marsh-men of Norfolk know this bird under the
title of the "red craking reed-wren"; he took down the account of his specimen
as given by the man who shot it as follows : — " Being engaged on the broad all
138 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
night, he first heard the bird " noising " about nine o'clock in the evening, on the
6th of June, and observed it from his boat running up and down the dead reed
stems, from the tops of which it kept calling at intervals until two in the morning.
He then returned home, but at six o'clock he again found it in the clump of
reeds, though more restless and calling incessantly. Soon after this the wind
began to stir the reeds, and it then dropped down and remained silent among the
thick sedges. Up to this time he had imagined it to be a Grasshopper Warbler,
although the note seemed unusually loud and clear, and like them it kept moving
its head from side to side whilst singing. On the following evening, at eight
o'clock, the bird was still in the same place calling as before, and as one or two
of the Grasshopper Warblers were singing at the same time, he distinguished at
once a difference in their notes. As soon as he had shot the bird, he saw that
it was different to any he had handled before, and observing that it remained so
long in one spot, made every search for a nest, but could find no trace of one.
About ten years ago, he assures me there were several couple of birds on the
broad with similar notes, and he then found a nest with eggs, which, from his
description, might be either that of Savi's or of the Grasshopper Warbler. About
the first week in May of the following year, a bird, agreeing exactly in note and
appearance with the above, was also seen by this marsh-man in a small sallow
bush ; not having his gun with him, he watched it for some time, and had no
doubt of its identity."
The above account describes the habits of this species very accurately, as may
be seen when it is compared with the accounts of other observers. The song is
a monotonous trill, higher in pitch than that of the Grasshopper Warbler ; it is
usually sung from the top of a reed : the call-note is said to be krr.
The nest is placed upon a heap of tangled sedge leaves, and is carefully
concealed in sedges, reeds, or rush ; it is composed of interwoven leaves of broad
grass or sedge, with narrower leaves for a lining ; it is very neatly made, unusu-
ally deep, and is said to resemble a miniature nest of the Little Crake. The eggs,
four to six in number, are white or pale-buff, speckled with ashy brown surface
spots, and violet-grey shell spots ; the markings are most numerous at the larger
end, where they frequently form a zone ; dark hair-like Bunting lines are also
sometimes present.
Although this species is naturally of a skulking disposition, and, when alarmed,
drops down into the sedges for concealment. Count Wodzicki states that "both male
and female sit on the nest, and allow themselves to be watched withoiit leaving
it. If frightened off, they soon return." The nest appears to be built by the male
bird, although both sexes collect the materials.
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The H edge-Sparrow. 129
The food of Savi's Warbler is believed to consist entirely of insects and their
larvae ; doubtless spiders are also eaten by it as by all other Warblers.
The flight of this bird is said to have the same character as that of a Wren.
As a cage-bird I should imagine that, excepting for its rarity, Savi's Warbler
would be more irritating than interesting ; on clear days its monotonous trill is
said to be almost incessant. I once had a Canary which had been hand-reared,
and had therefore not learned its proper song : this bird never got beyond a high-
pitched key-whistle, or monotonous trill ; when it died I cannot say that I very
deeply regretted my loss : at the same time even this apology for a song was
heavenly music compared with the incessant wheel-screeching of a pair of Rosy-
faced Love-birds, and an3'one who had passed through a week of torment such as
I once experienced from these discord-producers, might perhaps sit down and
listen to Savi's Warbler with a beaming countenance.
Fawily— TURDID^. Subfamily— A CCENTORINAL.
The Hedge-Sparrow.
Accentor inodularis, Linn.
EXCEPTING in the extreme north of Europe, this species breeds pretty
generally ; in Norway to the forest boundary and to the east up to 60° N.
lat., but in the north it is rarely found during the winter, migrating thence in
autumn to Southern Europe, and occasionally to North Africa. South of the
Baltic and westwards to Northern Spain and Portugal it is generally distributed
during the simimer ; a few breeding in the mountains of Italy, as well as Asia
Minor, Palestine and the Caucasus : in the Lebanon and in Arabia Petrsea it also
occurs in winter.
Vol. I. ' ■ Z
I30 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
In Great Britain, excepting in the more exposed northern islands, it is
generall}^ distributed and abundant.
The popular name of this common bird being objected to by many writers, as
being likely to mislead the ignorant, the names of " Hedge- Accentor," " Shuffle-
wing," " Dunnock," " D3'kie," " Molly," and " Smokie" have been used in preference
(the majority being local appellations) ; but, when one considers that the term
Sparrow has been applied to numerous other members of the Order Passeres, such
as Serins of the genus Sycalis, Grass-finches of the genus Steganopleura and Manni-
kins of the genus Munia, it becomes an act of pedantry to reject a name which
is generally understood.
The Hedge-Sparrow is one of those familiar birds which will never desert
us, for it is just as happy in gardens, orchards, groves, shrubberies, plantations,
and hedges, as in the dense undergrowth of copses and woods. In the winter,
like the Robin, it seeks the habitations of man, and takes advantage of the refuse
food flung out for its sooty and more vulgar namesake : it is one of the first
songsters heard in suburban gardens, and helps to enliven the wet dreariness of
February. The song itself is not very remarkable for execution, but is bright
and clear, somewhat jiggy, if one may use such an expression, less plaintive and
varied than that of the Robin, and not so musical as that of the Wren : it consists
of very few notes ; but these are made the most of, so that the effect is decidedly
pleasing : also in mild winters it may be heard at times when most other birds
are silent.
Like the Chaffinch, the Hedge-Sparrow both runs and hops ; on the ground
it almost invariably runs with its head depressed as if constantly on the look out
for food, and when it catches sight of a spider or a seed it hops forwards, shuffling
its wings with a curious rapid action characteristic of its Subfamily. When passing
down a garden path this bird generally keeps close to the border, dodging now and
again under a shrub with a business-like action which almost reminds one of a
mouse : it is rarely seen in lofty trees, but seems rather to prefer shrubs and
hedges, amongst which it drops from branch to branch, peering about like a Tit
for insect food.
The nest of the Hedge-Sparrow has more frequently been represented by artists
than that of any other species, and yet the form selected for illustration is one
which many a zealous birdsnester has never met with — a perfect cup of very fine
bents, root-fibre, and moss, thickly lined with black horse-hair, a little fibre, and
one or two soft fluffy feathers : one nest of this character I found on May ist,
1884, and it is the only one of its kind I have ever seen. The nest is always
warm and cosy in appearance, rather deep, the outer walls being generally enclosed
I
The Hedge-Sparrow. 131
in a framework of coarse twigs, rough roots of couch-grass or thick grass-stalks,
and occasionally fragments of dead furze ; the walls themselves are thick, and
somewhat loosely formed of green moss, frequently intermixed with bents, and
sometimes a little sheep's wool ; the lining consists of hair, fine fibre, and often a
little wool and a small soft feather or two. Very rarely nests may be found in
which there is no moss, but in most nests this material is very freely used.
The position of the nest varies a good deal, but is rarely found at more than
four or five feet from the ground ; it is very frequently built in a hawthorn hedge,
but I have taken it from the branches of sapling trees in thickets, from furze-
bushes, evergreens, brambles, faggot-stacks, ivy growing on a wall, and from a
tuft of grass on the ground, where it exhibited a curious appearance, as the dead
grass-stalks forming the upper part of the framework were so arranged as to form
an irregular pentagon ; although this nest only contained one egg I could not
resist securing it as a curiosity. In 1887, Mr. A. E. Shaw recorded the discovery
of a nest of this bird built in a cabbage, and Mr. Gray, in his " Birds of the
West of Scotland," mentions a nest placed at the base of a hart's-tongue fern on
a ledge in a cave at Ailsa Craig.
The eggs of the Hedge-Sparrow are so conspicuous that every rustic and
schoolboy is perfectly familiar with them ; they vary in number from four to six,
but five is a number rarely exceeded; in colour they are of a beautiful turquoise
blue and unspotted ; in form usually a very perfect oval ; they do, however, vary
very considerably in form, although the extreme variations of a very long pear-
shape and an almost perfect sphere are not often met with ; nevertheless, by diligent
search, I have taken both types, which are figured on pi. VIII of my " Handbook
of British Oology," and again in the present work.
It is well-known that the nest of the Hedge-Sparrow is one of the Cuckoo's
favourites ; this is curious, because the egg of this parasitical bird is, as a rule,
utterly unlike that of the Accentor ; Mr. Seebohm's fine series of Cuckoo's eggs
nevertheless contains a variety resembling those of the Hedge-Sparrow, excepting
in its superior size.
Seeing that Accentor viodularis did not object to incubating an egg so utterly
unlike its own, I once tried the experiment of putting two Whitethroat's eggs
into a nest in a hawthorn hedge which closed the end of my last garden. It was
no good, the alien eggs were simply thrown over the side and the nest deserted,
proving clearly that the Hedge-Sparrow is not colour-blind : it will submit to the
deposit system of the Cuckoo, but will not have anything to do with loans from
other species.
Frequently commencing to breed in March, it is not to be wondered at that
132 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
this bird should frequently produce three broods in the year; the abundance of
the species is therefore easy to understand, although its absolute hardiness and
the ease with which it accommodates itself to change of diet may have something
to do with it. Its natural food consists largely of insects, spiders, worms, and
seeds of weeds ; but, in confinement, like its cousin the Pekin Nightingale, it maj'-
gradually be accustomed to live upon a seed diet alone.
Mr. Stevenson in his " Birds of Norfolk," says : — " With myself the Hedge-
Sparrow has been always an especial favourite, from its gentle unobtrusive nature,
assimilating so well with the neat russet and grey of its finely marked though
quiet plumage ; retiring, yet not shy, and, if never quarrelsome, still always
" holding his own," even with the pert Sparrow and still more saucy Redbreast."
This reminds me that I have given no detailed account of the plumage of this
well-known bird.
The upper surface of the head is smoke-grey (slightly washed with buif in
the female) and streaked with dull blackish-brown ; on the neck and shoulders the
grey becomes a pure bluish-ash ; the back is rufous-brown, broadly streaked with
black ; but the rump and vipper tail-coverts are golden-olivaceous and not streaked ;
the wings are dark-brown, all the feathers more or less broadly edged externally
with rufous-brown ; the tail feathers are similar, but tinted externally with rufous
or olivaceous-brown ; lores and ear-coverts brown ; chin, throat, sides of neck, and
breast bluish-ash ; lower breast and abdomen in the centre whitish-ash ; under tail-
coverts buffish-white, with brown streaks ; flanks olivaceous-brown, with dark-brown
streaks ; bill pitchy-brown, the lower mandible slightly paler ; feet horn-brown ; iris
hazel. The female has the bill slightly broader than in the male, the crown and
flanks with more defined streaks. The young have no grey on the head or throat,
but are altogether browner and more spotted than adult birds.
Mr. Stevenson is mistaken in thinking that the Hedge- Sparrow is not
quarrelsome ; I have seen it disputing vigorously with a Skylark, in the open, for
the possession of an insect, and a hen bird which I kept for several years in an
aviary killed several Titlarks and finally robbed a pair of Yellow- Hammers of their
nest, in which she deposited a full clutch of infertile eggs, and sat steadily upon
them until, at the end of a fortnight, I removed them.
Another point in which I differ from this author is, that he speaks of the
Accentor as singing as sweetly in an aviary as out of doors. Of the many birds
which, from time to time, I have kept, not one ever made the slightest attempt
at singing. When first caught few birds are more wild, and the}^ show their
wildness in an idiotic manner which is simply exasperating, spending the whole
day, excepting when feeding, in flying perpendicularly from the earth to the roof,
o
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The Alpine Accentor. 133
in one comer of the aviary, and dropping back headlong : sometimes it takes three
or four weeks before they abandon this senseless acrobatic performance.
In a cage the Hedge-Sparrow becomes comparatively tame in a few days ; but
then it is far more liable to the distressing ophthalmic disease referred to by
Stevenson, than it is in an aviary ; moreover, being extremely restless, it hops
incessantly from perch to perch — click-clack, click-clack, "doing the pendulum trick"
as I used to say ; a performance most irritating to ones nerves.
The only sound I ever heard from my Hedge- Sparrows was a sharp and rather
short high whistle, which I took to be the call-note ; and, what with their stupidity,
pugnacity,* and sulky silence in captivity, this species is, in my opinion, the very
worst subject for aviary life. In the garden and the country it is charming ; but,
as a pet, contemptible.
I once tried rearing this species from the nest, but made the mistake of
feeding upon hard-boiled ^%% and sweet biscuit : the young should certainly have
been fed principally upon moistened ants' cocoons and cut up mealworms, or small
caterpillars.
Family— TURD I D^.. Subfamily— ACCENTORIN^.
The Alpine Accentor.
Accentor collaris, Scop.
CURIOUSLY enough, although this bird is only an occasional straggler to Great
Britain, I caught a specimen in my garden at Penge about the year 1883.
At the time I did not know what to make of it ; and, not being aware of its
rarity, I never recorded the capture : indeed I supposed then that it might, be only
an unusually large, brownish, and somewhat aberrant variety of the Hedge-Sparrow :
it was evidently a young bird, as the white throat-patch was barely indicated. So
* One of my males fought a Robin, until he became a perfect scarecrow, and had to be liberated.
^
134 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs
far as I can remember, I caught this bird in September; I know that it was just
when the bird-catchers were bringing Linnets and Goldfinches for sale. The bird
was abominably wild, knocked itself about in a cage, finally got a growth over
one eye, and died in such poor condition that I never thought of preserving the
skin : had I then known its value, I should have saved it in proof of my statement,
and certainly kept it when alive in a large cage by itself; whereas it had two
Hedge-Accentors as companions ; the latter, by the side of their rare relative,
looked insignificant, much as a Song- Thrush by the side of a Missel-Thrush.*
This species has its home in the mountains of South-western Europe, Asia
Minor, the Caucasus, and Northern Persia. In Great Britain it has been chiefly
met with in the southern counties ; having been known to occur in Cambridge-
shire, Suffolk, Essex, Surrey, Sussex, Devonshire, Somersetshire, Gloucestershire,
Wales, and Yorkshire.
The adult bird has the crown and nape smoky-grey, with darker stripes ; the
remainder of the upper surface brown, with darker shaft-streaks ; rump slightly
paler than the back ; median and greater wing-coverts brown, varied with black,
and tipped with white ; quills and tail-feathers dark-brown, tipped with buff ; ear-
coverts grey, with darker stripes ; chin and throat white, with black spots ; breast,
centre of abdomen, and under tail-coverts smoky-grey ; flanks chestnut, with huffish
edges to the feathers ; bill with the upper mandible mostly black, base yellowish ;
lower mandible yellowish, black at the tip ; feet flesh-brownish ; iris hazel. Young
birds have the plumage spotted with rufous, and the white on the throat is
wanting.
Gatke says : — " This interesting native of the mountains has not considered it
beneath his dignity to leave his Alpine home in order to find a place in the group
of distinguished visitors to little Heligoland. I have obtained the bird on three
occasions: two individuals in spring plumage in May 1852 and 1870, and one in
autumn plumage in October 1862. Apart from these instances, there is certain
proof of its having been seen on two other occasions, but the birds in question
could not be shot on account of their extraordinary shyness."
Seebohm, on the authority of various observers, states that the " Alpine
Accentor is a summer visitor to the grassy slopes where a brilliant arctic flora,
watered by the ever-melting ice, covers the ledges of the rocks and the little
plateaux amongst the boulders, between the highest limit of forest-growth and the
lowest boundary of perpetual snow. Its migrations, however, are very limited.
* In recording these facts now, I am perfectlj- well aware that many scientific Ornithologists will only
curl their noses in scorn, believing that I am either drawing upon a vivid imagination, or talking of some
common species which I imagined to be an Accentor; but those who know me intimately, will give me credit
for an excellent memory for form and colouring.
The Alpine Accentor. 135
When its breeding- grounds are covered with snow it descends into the valleys,
and in severe winters will sometimes wander further from home and be seen in
unwonted localities. Except, perhaps, when actually engaged in the duties of
nidification, it is a more or less gregarious bird."
On the earth this bird both runs and hops, like the Hedge- Accentor ; it
certainly does not " drop its head and the fore part of its body suddenly, at
the same time jerking its tail and drooping its wings." It is an exceedingly
nervous bird, more so than the Hedge-Accentor. The call-note is described
variously as a plaintive tree, tree, tree, and tri, tri, tri : so far as I can trust my
memory it is tsmee, tswee, tswee ; I am sure it is neither of the others, because no
bird but a talking species could utter such sounds.
Seebohm describes the song as a rich liquid chick, ich, ich, ich ; but it is also
said to sing like a lark.
Towards the end of May the nest is formed under a rock or bush upon the
earth ; it is a neatly constructed cup, consisting of dry round grass-stalks, inter-
woven with rootlets and lichens, and lined with line moss, wool, hair, or feathers.
The eggs vary in number from four to five, and are pale turquoise blue in
colour.
It has been stated that this species is double-brooded, the second nest being
constructed about the middle of July ; and, although there is no absolute proof of
this, it is exceedingly probable.* According to Count Wodzicki, it breeds in
colonies of from twenty to forty pairs, in which respect it differs very greatly from
the Hedge-Accentor.
The food of this species in spring consists of insects, their larvae, and doubt-
less of spiders and centipedes, as is the case with all other insect-eating birds ; in
autumn it eats various small fruits, and in winter seeds of grasses and other
weeds.
In Germany this species has been kept as a cage-bird, four examples having
been exhibited at the sixth show of the " Ornis" Society in Berlin. Herr Mathias
Rausch also remarks that " its song indeed is not specially full of variations, and
in its imitations is chiefly limited to the Crested-, Sky-, and Wood-I^arks ; at the
same time it is of importance for aviculture, and therefore is gladly kept and
cherished by fanciers."
This is all very well for those who only keep a bird in order to hear its song;
but it is infinitely more interesting to watch its habits, and to do this properly
the bird must be turned loose into an aviary.
Knowing what I do of the sneaking spitefulness of the common Hedge-
* It is well-known that the Hedge-Sparrow nests twice and sometimes three times a year.
136 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Accentor, when associated in an aviary with other birds, I should be very chary
of turning in the larger and more powerful Alpine species.
In a cage this bird runs like a Chaffinch, or like the Hedge-Accentor, and
although I did not see it before it entered my box-trap, I do not hesitate to affirm
that I am certain it ran (as well as hopped) in my garden. *
FAMILY CINCLID^.
WE now come to the second family of the Passeres, represented in Great
Britain by one resident species only, belonging to the typical genus
Cinclus.
All Ornithologists do not, however, agree with Mr. Howard Saunders as to
the validity of the family Cinclida ; for Mr. Seebohm placed the Dippers among
the Thrush-like birds Turdince, stating that they " may be distinguished from the
true Thrushes by their short concave wings fitting tightly to the body, and their
dense plumage adapted to their aquatic habits."
On the other hand Dr. Sharpe refers Cinclus to the end of the Subfamily
Troglodytina. or Wren-like birds, a group which they certainly resemble in their
domed mossy nests and white eggs, and to which also they have a slight likeness.
Perhaps, until the Doctors of this science have definitely established the
natural position of the Dippers beyond all dispute, by careful dissection of their
clothing, body, bones, and (having completed the dry bones) of the life-history,
including song, call-note, alarm-note, and note of indignation ; until, I say, all this
has been done, perhaps it will be most convenient to regard the Dippers as con-
stituting a distinct family.
As in the Wrens, the wings and tail are short, the first quill being very
short, the outer toe of the tarsus is also connected at the base with the middle
toe ; but the bill is somewhat different, the tip of the upper mandible being
slightly curved over, whereas that of a Wren is pointed ; altogether the Troglo-
dytine characters are very strong, and Dr. Sharpe gives us yet another, as follows : —
• When one is at a distance from the birds it is the slinking run, as well as the wing motion, which at
once distinguishes the Hedge-Sparrow from a true Sparrow.
cc
The Dipper 137
" The principal characteristic, however, of a Wren, and one that separates it from
the true Timeliine birds, is the almost entire absence of rictal bristles," — " for
Ornithologists who doubt that Cinclus is a Wren, an examination of the bill alone
will be sufficient to show that its place is with the Trog/odytitia."
Family— CINCLIDAl.
The Dipper.
Cinclus aquaticus, BecHvST.
COMMON and widely distributed though this conspicuous bird is, I have never
met with it in a wild state since I first began to study the class Aves : it
is likely enough that prior to that period I may have seen it in some of the
wilder parts of Devon without taking special note of the fact.
Dr. Sharpe (Catalogue of Birds, Vol. VI) says : — " The common White-throated
Dipper is widely spread over Central and Western Europe. It has been said to
occur in the Faeroes, and is found throughout Ireland in suitable localities, as
well as Scotland with the Hebrides, and breeds in the northern and central
counties of England, as well as in Wales and the south-western counties. In
other counties it is an accidental visitor.
The upper surface of the Dipper is slaty- grey, each feather with a dark-
brownish margin, but the head and nape are wholly brown, wings dark-brown, the
quills with greyish edges ; tail greyish-brown ; chin, throat, and front of breast
white ; remainder of under parts chestnut-brown, passing into dark smoky-brown
on the flanks, thighs, vent, and under tail-coverts ; bill black ; feet brown ; iris
hazel.
The female is very like the male, but is said to be darker on the flanks and
under tail-coverts. The young are greyer above, and show no chestnut-brown on
the under surface.
Vol. I. 2 -A.-
I
ijs British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Seebohm says: — "The havmts of the Dipper are exclusively confined to the
swift-flowing rocky mountain-streams. On these he is found all the year round,
in places where the waters now curl over hidden rocks, or dash round the exposed
and mossy ones, and toss and fall in never-ceasing strife. The banks must be
rugged also to suit the Dipper, all the better if in the rock-clefts a few mountain-
ashes and birches have gained a good hold. But a Dipper is not a bird of the
branches. You will make your first acquaintance with him most probably as he
dashes rapidly from some water-encircled rock, or as he shoots past you uttering
his sharp but monotonous call-note, to alight on some distant stone, or mayhap
seek the boiling current itself, to astonish and amuse you by his aquatic gambols.
The Dipper is also found on the barest of mountain-torrents, places where not
a tree or shrub is found, where the waters roll and tumble in wildest mood across
the heathery moors and down the bare mountain-sides."
The Dipper seeks much of its food under water, in which it dives and swims
with ease. Lord Lilford, after confirming the statement of other observers — that
this species, unlike the Kingfisher and other diving birds, does not take a header,
observes : — " The Dipper sinks, if I may say so, horizontal!}-, and, as may be
supposed, seems to have a good deal of trouble to keep below. These birds will
go down in the most rapid streams and boiling pools below a waterfall, and,
emerging with a jerk, fly off" to a big stone, set up a short but very sweet song,
and resume their subaqueous explorations. All their movements are sudden and
rapid ; they seem to be always in a hurry, and are eminently in keeping with the
character of the streams which they frequent, and to which they add a great
attraction."
" The song of the Dipper, though not very powerful, is very pleasing, and is
associated in my mind with many delightful reminiscences of wild mountain and
river scenery in our island and abroad. The male bird sits jerking his tail, and
warbling often amidst a whirl and roar of rushing waters, and, in manner, reminds
one a great deal of the Common Wren ; the song is continued throughout the
winter months."
The nest of the Dipper, or " Water Ouzel," as it is sometimes called, is
a domed structure ; a hollow ball of moss, sometimes interwoven with grass and
with an entrance-hole in front and low down ; the inner lining is firml}- compacted
of twigs, dry grass, rootlets, and dead leaves. The site chosen for the nest is in
a mossy bank, a hole in a rock, wall or bridge, or among the moss}' roots of trees
overhanging water, not infrequently on a rocky ledge behind a waterfall. The
building commences earlj' in April, and at least two broods are reared in the year.
The same nest is sometimes used twice in a season. The eggs, four to five in
The Dipper. 139
number, are pure white, beautifully oval, slightly less glossy than Thrush eggs,
but too smooth to be chalky in appearance (like unspotted eggs of the Wren) ; in
size they agree pretty nearly with eggs laid by the Song-Thrush in its first season ;
but they are more perfect ovals, the smaller end being decidedly more pointed.
The food of the Dipper consists largely of insects and their larvse ; many of
which, such as caddis-worms, the voracious larvse of dragon-flies and water-beetles,
it seeks at the bottom of the water ; thus proving itself the greatest friend of the
pisciculturist, by devouring the insects which prey upon fish-spawn and young
fry ; it also eats spiders, small molhisca, worms, and seeds of grasses. In pursuit
of its subaqueous pre}^ it is said both to paddle and use its wings.
Of course the ignorant fish-preserver, seeing the Dippers diving under water
among his young fry, immediately comes to the conclusion that his watch-dog is a
wolf, and shoots it : in like manner, I heard of a Kentish farmer shooting a Red-
backed Shrike, because he saw it in one of his cherry-trees ; and, when the bird
was opened, and the contents of its crop were shown to him, his only remark
was — " Ai doant know nothen abeut that ; ur wuz in my churries."
As regards the Dipper as an aviary bird, I have a vague idea that at one
time a pair occupied a very pretty rock-and-water aviary at the end of the fish-
house in our Zoological Gardens. I distinctly remember Wagtails in that aviary,
and I think Dippers also ; but it is many years ago, so I may be mistaken. Lord
Lilford says : — " I have often attempted to rear young Dippers, but never succeeded ;
about three months is the longest period I have ever managed to keep them alive."
Mr. Frohawk writes : — "It was not until I visited North Devon, in October,
1895, that I had the pleasure of meeting with this bird in a wild state: during
my first ramble along the picturesque banks of the Bast Lyn ; a wildly rushing
stream, whose bed is studded with boulders and fragments of rock, over and around
which its water pours and rushes in mad haste, I felt sure that I had come upon
the home of the Dipper, so kept a sharp look-out for the birds. After walking
for about a mile, I caught sight of a bird darting obliquely across the stream, this
I instantly recognised as a Dipper. The following day I again visited the spot,
and had a capital chance of carefully observing the attitude and actions of the
species, by concealing myself upon the bank, close to a small waterfall, which
appeared to be a favourite haunt for a pair of these birds.
I had not waited long before a Dipper appeared, upon a projecting rock at
the side of the fall, only a few yards from my hiding place : this enabled me to
make a sketch of the bird, as it stood upon the rock intently watching the flow
of water (I presume for some aquatic insects, or other food) and it struck me how
different its appearance was, as it stood on that rock, with the spray splashing
I40 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
over it, from the illustrations and stuffed specimens which I had long been
acquainted with. Instead of a dumpy and somewhat clumsy looking bird, remind-
ing one of a huge fat awkward looking Wren, the Dipper is an extremely alert,
active bird ; the usual attitude assumed by the ten or twelve birds which I saw,
was as follows : — the head generally held fairly high, on a well-proportioned neck,
and plenty of it ; the tail slightly elevated, not at right angles with the body as
generally represented, in wren-like fashion, but carried as with most other birds ;
the wings generally with the tips held slightly below the tail : dltogether the bird
had a very trim and brisk appearance.
One of these birds rose and hovered in front of the waterfall, remaining
stationary in the air for fifteen or twenty seconds (reminding one of the hovering
power of the Humming-bird hawk-moth poised in front of a flower) : suddenly it
dashed through the rushing and foaming water, and landed on the opposite rock,
without a draggled feather ; a good example of the power of this bird !
The flight of the Dipper is swift and straight like that of the Kingfisher.
Although I believe it sings during the autumn, I was not fortunate enough to hear
its song ; nor did I see it pursuing its prey under the water, running freely about
upon the bottom and using its wings as oars."
It is extremely fortunate that Mr. Frohawk should have been able to sketch
this bird from life in one of its wild haunts, before the commencement of the
present work ; it being one of the few British species which he had previously not
had an opportunity of studying when at liberty.
FAMILY PANURID^.
REPRESENTED in Great Britain by one species only, which has, I think
quite incorrectly^ been called a Titmouse : in all its actions it resembles
the group of Ploceine Finches known to bird-keepers as Waxbills : it is also very
largely a seed-eating species. As Mr. Howard Saunders says : — " In its digestive
organs and other points of internal structure, this bird shows no real affinity to
the Tits; and some writers have advocated its relationship to the Finches."
»
Bearded Reedling.
The Bearded Reedling. hi
Seebohm, whilst he speaks somewhat disparagingly of those who do not believe
in the Parine relationship of Panurits, quotes the fact of two hens in confinement
laying forty-nine eggs between the 30th of May and the and of August, a feat
such as one might expect from a bird having Ploceine affinities : he also notes the
Bunting-like character of its eggS.
Lord Lilford says, of examples of this genus : — " Their actions much resemble
those of the true Titmice, from which in many other respects, such as internal
structure, nesting habits, colouration of eggs, and voice, they differ very widely."
In this he is quite right, with one exception : — I never yet saw adult Titmice go
to sleep in a row all huddled together, as the Bearded Reedlings do, and as the
Astrilds are in the habit of doing ; it must also be remembered that many Ploceine
birds are extremely Tit-like in their habits, that the majority of them are reed
birds, feeding (precisely in the same way as the Reed- Pheasant) on seeds of reeds
and grasses, and small insects.
Stevenson, in his " Birds of Norfolk," says : — " I cannot help feeling, — that
Macgillivray, guided by an examination of its digestive organs, was right in con-
sidering it more allied to the Fringilline than the Parine group."
Even the fact that this species eats small fresh-water mollusca does not, in
any way, militate against its relationship to the Finches, many of which (and
especially Ploceine Finches) eat worms with avidity, and would, in a wild state,
probably devour small mollusca if they chanced to meet with them : indeed it is
probable that the lime required by these little birds when laying is chiefly obtained
from the shells of small land-, or fresh- water mollusca.
Family— PANURIDy^.
The Bearded Reedling.
Panurus biarmicus, lyiNN.
ALTHOUGH in the main I have judged that I could not do better than
follow the classification adopted by Mr. Howard Saunders, in his most
excellent " Illustrated Manual of British Birds," my conscience is not sufficiently
Vol. I. 2 B
142 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
elastic to allow of my calling the present species a Titmouse. I have therefore
adopted the alternative name, in preference to the misleading one of " Reed-
Pheasant," which is, to my mind, somewhat too suggestive of Hydrophasiantis : — a
bird not strikingly like Panurus.
Dr. Gadow states that this bird is distributed " all over Europe (except in
Sweden, Norwa5% and Northern Russia), extending into Turkestan." Seebohm says
that " it has not been recorded south of the Mediterranean or north of Pomerania."
" Finsch obtained it in the swamps of the Kara Irtish, south of Lake Zaisan,
on the borders of Chinese Tartary ; and Prjevalsky found it in North-eastern
Thibet."
In Great Britain, the Bearded Reedling has of late years become very rare,
owing chiefly to the draining of fens and marshes ; but also to the greed of dealers,
who have stimulated the marsh-men to incessant search after its nest and eggs.
Though formerly its range doubtless extended further northward, it is now chiefly
confined to the south-eastern and southern counties of England.
The male Bearded Reedling differs from its hen much as some of the Grass-
finches do, in the different colouring of the head and absence of distinct markings
on the face : the description given b}' Mr. Saunders is so clear and concise that I
cannot do better than quote it : —
" The adult male has the crown bluish-grey ; a black loral patch descends
diagonally from below the eye and terminates in a pointed moustache ; nape, back
and rump orange-tawny ; wings longitudinally striped with buffish-white, black, and
rufous ; quills brown with white outer margins ; tail mostly rufous ; chin and throat
greyish-white, turning into greyish-pink on the breast ; flanks orange-tawny ; under
tail- coverts jet-black ; beak yellow ; legs and feet black. Length 6.5 in.; wing 2.25
in. The female has the head brownish-fawn, and no black on the moustache or
under tail-coverts ; in other respects she is merely duller than the male. The
young are like the female, but the crown of the head and the middle of the back
are streaked with black."
This species is a bird of the broads, fens, and marshes ; and, to my mind, is
a representative in Europe of the large family Ploceida or Weaving- Finches ; at
the same time it does not, as might be expected, belong to that family ;
but should perhaps be regarded as a link between the latter and the Buntings ; its
habits resembling the former, and its nidification the latter group of birds.
The nest, which I have fovmd once in Kent, and twice on the Ormesby
broads, is placed close to the M'ater, upon a mass of half decayed leaf and broken
reed-stalk, amongst the growing reed-stems ; it is an open cup-shaped structure,
and has a coarse appearance for the nest of so small a bird, the outside walls
The Bearded Reedling. ' 143
being formed of loosely interlaced dead leaves of sedges, reeds, and broad-grasses :
the lining consisting entirely of the feathery top of the reed.
The Kentish nest, placed upon a small floating island of reeds, in a large
pond at Kemsley (where "Reed- Pheasants" were formerly common) was perfect; but
probably abandoned, for it contained no eggs : doubtless the young had flown,
inasmuch as it was late in May ; and, according to Mr. Stevenson, the full clutch
of eggs is frequently deposited by the 7th or 8th April. The Norfolk nests had
an unfinished appearance, and also contained no eggs, possibly they may have
been plundered by the " lookers," or by marshmen. I could hardly have been
too early (as I formerly supposed) to find eggs of this species, for again it was
in Ma}'.
The Bearded Reedling lays from four to seven eggs of a sordid or brownish-
white colour, with a few dots, dashes, and thread-like lines of dark-brown : they
are distinctly Bunting-like in character : as is the deep nest in which they are
deposited.
This species is extremely hardy ; and, like the tiny Waxbills of India, is
capable of withstanding the severest cold of our winters ; as Stevenson observes : —
" Delicate as these little creatures appear, I have found them during the sharpest
frosts, when the snipe had left the half-frozen waters for upland springs and
drains, still busy amongst the reed-stems as lively and musical as ever." It is
therefore not surprising that it is a resident species.
According to Seebohm the song " is said to be only a few simple notes,
something like those of the Blue Tit. The call-note appeared to be a musical
ping, ping, something like the twang of a banjo. The alarm-note is said to be a
chir-r-rr, something like the scold of a Whitethroat. The cry of distress is described
as a plaintive ce-ar, c£-ar."
As cage-birds Bearded Reedlings are altogether charming ; and, of late years,
the admirers of the so-called " Reed- Pheasant " or "Bearded Tit," have greatly
increased in numbers. Lord Lilford says : — " The chief food of this species appears
to be the seed of reed, but in captivity I have found them most omnivorous, and
ants' eggs were very favourite morsels with them, as they are with almost every
cage-bird with which I have any acquaintance. My living specimens of this species
were purchased in London, and were said to have been sent thither from the
Netherlands ; they became very tame, and are very engaging pets, in motion the
whole day long, often hanging head downwards from the top of their cage, and
crowding together closely at dusk on the same perch."
Formerly this species was rarely if ever exhibited, but now it is present at
most of our bird-shows, examples probably imported from Holland being even
144 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
admitted to the British classes : this, I think, is as it should be, for, to the
aviculturist who studies the birds of Great Britain, it matters not at all whether
his specimens were caught on this side of the water or the other, provided that
they are identical in plumage.
FAMILY PARID^.
THE Titmice constitute one of the most charming groups among our familiar
wild birds ; they are incessantly in motion, throwing themselves into every
conceivable position ; as easily hanging upside down by one foot as many other
active birds by both : on a branch they move in a jerky irregular fashion ; and, on
the wing, their flight is very undulating and not long sustained.
The strength both of bill and claw in these birds is surprising, as anyone
who has reared them from the nest can testify : they cling to ones fingers like
stiff springs, and if they hammer one's nails with their short stout bills, one blow
is enough : no wonder that, when one of a community is taken ill, his companions
find it an easy matter to break open his skull and devour his brains ; for it is
not only the Great Tit which does this.
The songs of the Titmice are scarcely musical, though somewhat varied ; for
they do not consist, as has been stated, of mere repetitions of the call-notes ; indeed
the songs of the Great Tit, for he has at least two, do not include his call-note
at all, though one of them does introduce an approach to his alarm-note.
The nests of the Tits, excepting when built in holes (as they frequently are)
are domed or cave-like structures, with a small entrance in front. The eggs are
stated to vary in number from five to twelve, but I know of no Tit which lays a
complete clutch of less than six, or more than ten ; although as manj' as twenty
may be found in the same nest, if two hens are concerned in the laying. Never-
theless I would not dogmatically assert, in opposition to the direct statements of
good observers, that twelve eggs might not occasionally be deposited by one bird ;
but I should be inclined to believe rather that a first hen, after commencing to
lay, had either died or been killed, and her place supplied by a second at once :
there would be nothing at all improbable in this.
Long-Tailed Tit
The Long-Tailed Tit. 145
Family— PARID^.
The Long-Tailed Tit.
Acredula caudata, LiNN.
THE British representative of this species, to which the name of Acredula rosea
has been given, can hardly be maintained as a distinct species ; inasmuch
as, in Western Germany and France, if not also in Italy and Turkey, it freely
interbreeds with the typical form ; as, in Lombardy it appears to do with another
variety — A. irbii, between which and A. rosea all kinds of intergrades exist.
Moreover the differences between these forms are slight and not invariably constant ;
and the fact that three or four examples of the typical form have been obtained
at various times, or seen in company with the British variety would tend to show
that the modifications are not even strictly climatic. The different types are as
follows : —
A. caudata: — Head, nape and sides of neck, throat, breast, edge of wing and
under wing coverts snow-white.
Distributed through Northern and Central Europe, across Southern Siberia to
Japan : has occurred in Great Britain.
A. macrura : — Differing in having a larger tail by about half an inch in the
majority of specimens.
Northern Europe, eastwards from St. Petersburg and in the island of Askold.
A. trivir^ata : — Slightly smaller than A. rosea, most examples having the black
eyebrow-streak continued across the lores to the base of the bill.
Yokohama.
A. irbii: — Also slightly smaller than A. rosea, with the mantle, back, and
rump greyer, and the scapulars grey.
Sicily, South and Central Italy and Spain.
A. rosea : — The white on the head restricted to the crown and forehead.
Holland, Western Germany, France, Northern Italy and Turkey. Pretty
generally distributed, though somewhat local, throughout Great Britain.
146 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Although, in body, this is the smallest of the British Titmice, it certainly is
by far the most charming ; and its nest, in beauty, excels that of any other
feathered inhabitant of our islands, not even excepting that of the Chaffinch.
The favourite haunts of this bird are groves, especially where box and
hawthorn abound, the outskirts of woods and plantations, orchards and shrubberies :
it is always on the move ; and, not being especially nervous, can be easily
watched whilst actively seeking its food among the branches, or capturing winged
prey in the air; the only requisite is that the observer remain still.
The nest, which varies much in form, is frequently placed in a tall hawthorn
hedge, sometimes on the outside in full view of every wayfarer, sometimes in a
clipped hedge in the very centre of the forked and thorny outgrowth of one of the
middle branches ; in an evergreen shrub, such as a laurustinus ; in a holly- or
furze-bush, in brambles overgrown with honeysuckle or other vines, in ivy, or in
the branches of a lichen- covered tree. In form it is either oval, which has given
the popular name of " Bottle-Tit " to its architect ; irregularly oblong, from which
the birds' local name of "Barrel-Tit" is probably derived, or almost perfectly
spherical : in size it varies to an extraordinary degree, one of my nests measuring
6^ inches in depth, by 4^^ inches in diameter at the widest part ; another is 4f
inches in depth, and 3f inches in diameter ; and a third is 4! inches in depth, and
3^ inches in diameter : the entrance to the nest is always in front, though not
always accurately centred ; it is always above the middle, and frequently near the
top of the structure. The materials hardly vary at all, consisting of green moss
felted with wool and cobweb and studded with white lichen ; one of my nests also
shows fragments of reddish bark ; the lining consists of a mass of feathers and hair.*
The eggs are pure white, usually finely but somewhat sparely speckled with
rusty or pale blood-red ; but occasionally only faintly suffiised with this colour : in
form they vary from a very obtusely pointed long oval, to a short oval almost
approaching a sphere.
My experience of the eggs of this species is, that ten represent a full clutch ;
but Lord Lilford says that he has found as many as eleven, and that seven is the
usual number : as many as twenty have been foiind in a nest, but there can hardly
be a question that, in this case, they are the product of two hens. In North-
amptonshire the country people call this Tit " Pudding-bag " and " Pudding-poke,"
as well as " Bottle Tit."
Unlike the nests of most of our birds, the home of the Long-tailed Tit takes
both parents fully a fortnight to complete ; but, when finished, it certainly is "a
thing of beauty " ! When I have seen one of these lovely works of art torn to
* The local name of "Feather-poke" may be due to this.
<
O
The Great Tit. 147
fragments and lying on the footpath, I have felt that no punishment could be too
great, to inflict upon the besotted clodhopper who had committed that piece of
vandalism.*
The Long-tailed Tit has no regular song, but it constantly repeats its shrill
call-note — tsee-tsee-tsee ; and Seebohm speaks of another note (which I have not
heard) and renders it — •" a sort of ptge, impossible to express on paper."
As a cage-bird the beautiful Tit is extremely difi&cult to keep ; a friend of
mine who has, on several occasions, attempted to domesticate it, tells me that,
although he did not find it shy or specially wild, he could never manage to keep
it alive for more than two or three days.t Probably, if hand-reared, this charming
little bird might be made a pet of : had I ever been able to find a nest containing
young, I should certainly have attempted to bring them up. Perhaps I should
have failed, and thus unnecessarily deprived the parents of their very attractive
family : in the case of many birds, this would be a matter of little moment ; but
a family of Bottle-Tits is more than usually united, living in unison throughout the
autumn and winter ; and only separating, for breeding purposes, in the following
spring.
Family— P ARID AL.
The Great Tit.
Partis major, LiNN.
SBEBOHM observes that " The Great Tit appears to be found throughout the
Palaearctic region, from the British Islands to the Pacific. In Norway, under
the influence of the gulf-stream, it ranges as far north as the arctic circle (lat.
• I found all my nests between Rainham and Newington, in Kent, but I have seen the bird in the autumn
on Boxhill, near Dorking.
t Dr. Girtanner succeeded in keeping I^ong-tailed Tits in confinement as long as two years. They thrive
best when caught in winter, and should at first be fed on leaf-lice and other insects.
148 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
66|^°). In West Russia it has not been recorded north of lat. 64°. In the valley
of the Obb, Finsch and Brehm did not observe it north of lat. 58°. On the Pacific
coast, MiddendorfiF did not obtain it further north than lat. 55°. It extends in the
west as far south as the Canary Islands, Algeria, Palestine, and Persia, and in the
east as far as North Turkestan and the Amoor."
This beautiful bird has the crown of the head to below the eye and backwards
to the nape glossy black with a bluish sheen ; the mantle and upper back are
olivaceous-green, which shades into deep ash-grey on the lower back and upper
tail-coverts ; tail with the inner webs greyish-black, the outer webs deep ash-grey,
excepting the outermost feather which has the web and tip white, the next feather
also white-tipped ; wing-coverts bluish pearl-grey, the outer ones broadly tipped
with white ; the primaries smoky-brown, the basal half of the outer webs edged
with pearl-grey and the terminal half with white ; secondaries greyish-brown, darker
towards the shaft and paler towards the margins, the outer webs with broad pale
edges, the anterior feathers being edged with pearl-grey, and the posterior ones
with white ; the cheeks, ear-coverts, and sometimes a small spot on the nape snow-
white ; a belt encircling the neck, the chin, throat, fore-chest, and an irregular
streak down the centre of the breast to the vent blue-black, remainder of body
below dull sulphur-yellow ; under tail-coverts white, varied with black, the tail
feathers below ash-grey, the outer feathers varied as above with white ; bill shining
black, feet dark leaden-grey ; iris deep brown.
The female is slightly duller than the male, and the stripe below is a little
narrower. Young birds are also duller, with the cheeks more yellow in tint.
In general colouring our Great Tit curiously resembles the smaller (N. W.
Indian) form of the Persian Bulbul fPycnonotus leiicotisj .
The " Ox-eye " Tit, as this bird is often called, is abundantly met with in woods,
plantations, shrubberies, orchards and gardens ; it may be seen at almost all times
of the year in search of food, and I do not doubt that many caterpillars of the
common Puss-moth which, from their bizarre aspect, deter most birds from touching
them, fall victims to this and the other species of Parus : I know that, in confine-
ment, the Great Tit does not hesitate for a moment to seize and tear them to pieces.
In the winter all these birds are easily attracted by a suspended beef-bone or lump
of suet, and the actions of the birds can then be well studied ; for in winter more
than at other times, the Tits are confiding and reckless of consequences : on this
account they are more easily caught in cage-traps than any other birds.
The call-note of the Great Tit much resembles that of the Chaffinch — chick,
chicli, cliich, with a slight metallic n sound before the last cJi ; its alarm-note is
like the bleating of a kid^ — a sort of werry, erre, erre, sometimes running together
The Great Tit. 149
into a long vibration (I have heard the note when a cat has been climbing the
tree in which the bird was, and invariably after this Tit has been caught and
caged). The song varies a good deal, but the best-known song of this species is
its ungreased wheel-barrow note, which may be heard at all seasons — chec-chi, chec-
chi, chee-chi, chee-chi. The true love song is only heard in the spring — tsoo-tsoo tverry,
tsoo-tsoo i(<erry, tsce tsee.
The nest is always placed in some kind of cavity, even if it be but a gap
among the sticks below a Rook's nest ; but the favourite site is certainly a hole
in a fruit-tree sometimes a foot or more below the opening ; it may also be foiind
in a mere decayed cavity, in which case the nest is bixilt like that of a Wren ; in
a flower-pot, letter-box, an old disused pump, a hole in a wall, or even in the
ground, and often behind detached planking and lattice-work.
In form the nest represents two types, those built in open situations are
domed, formed of moss ; and, in one which I took, without any lining (although
it contained its full complement of eggs) ; the commoner type of nest is merely a
slightly concave disc at the bottom of the hole selected by the birds for their
nursery, and consists of a thick foundation of dried grass or moss, with an upper
layer of hair, wool, or feathers : occasionally (but chiefly when moss is used)
the moss is carried a little distance iip the inner walls of the hollow trunk or
branch. It is no easy matter for the birdsnester to secure a perfect specimen of
the latter type of nest, inasmuch as one has to raise it to the entrance hole by
means of a long twisted wire, without losing any of the eggs, and then draw it
slowly through what is often a very small aperture.
According to Seebohm the number of eggs varies from five to eleven ; but,
from my experience, I should say that a full clutch consisted of six eggs, and that
any number above six was the product of a second hen : that two hens do lay in
the same nest, was conclusively proved by Mr. J. C. Pool in a letter to the
" Feathered World" for May nth, 1894, where he noted the addition of two eggs
on the same day, to a nest built in a letter-box. Curiously enough Mr. Pool
insisted that the same hen must have laid both eggs, which is (of course) quite
out of the question ; moreover the nest contained ten eggs, two of which subse-
quently disappeared, doubtless broken during a quarrel between the two hens and
carried out by the victor. Mr. Pool's conviction that — as he never saw more than
one hen, there could hardly have been two, proves nothing : the same bird could
not have deposited two eggs on one day.* In colour the eggs are white, spotted
with blood-red.
* In the case of double-yoked eggs, I believe a day is missed before la3iiig: a Canary of mine after la3ing
three eggs, missed a day ; then laid a double-yoked one, which took seventeen days to hatch, and produced two
perfect young ones.
Vol. I. 2 C
150 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs
That Great Tits may be bigamists is possible, that they are Bluebeards and
cannibals we know ; for if two Ox-eyes are kept together in the same cage, one
will sooner or later kill the other, and eat (at least) its brains. Some years since
I caught twenty-three Great Tits, nine of which I turned into two large flight
cages, but they gradually devoured one another until two were left ; subsequently,
as I needed one of the cages, I turned the two savages in together, and, next
morning, one of them was reduced to the condition of Jezebel after the wild dogs
had left her : the uncanu}^ consumer of its brethren lived through two moults
afterwards, but lost all its beauty, becoming extremely pale in plumage, the
under-parts a dirty cream-colour.
A Great Tit turned into an aviary with other birds, is about as safe a com-
panion for the latter as a good healthy brown rat would be : charming and useful
when free, he is repulsive in captivity on account of his murderous disposition.
The food of this bird when wild consists largely of insects and their larvae,
spiders, seeds and buds, also flesh and fat when procurable.* The absurd state-
ments made by many writers, as to this and the other Tits only destroying buds
for the sake of the maggots contained therein, can be disproved by anyone who
has turned them into an aviary in which shrubs and creepers are planted : in so
limited an area two or three days will suffice to dismantle every shrub and creeper
of both buds and leaves, which are wantonly torn off" and dropped. Of course, in
the open, buds are so many and birds are so few, that comparatively little real
mischief is done ; and probably no more fruit buds are destroyed than a gardener
would purposely prune away in the form of unripe fruit. Birds nevertheless
destroy, not buds only, but leaves and green bark, in which no suspicion of a
maggot exists, out of simple wanton destructiveness ; just as they will snatch
feathers from one another and fling them away.
In captivity, this, and all the Titmice, are very fond of nuts, especially
Barcelonas and walnuts ; next to which, mutton suet is their favourite food ; these
dainties they will eat almost immediately after their capture ; although, for the first
day or so. Great Tits spend most of their time in hammering at the wire and
woodwork of their prison : pretty as they are, it is wrong to shut them up ; their
nature is far too wild.
In May, 1886, I tried hand-rearing Ox-eyes: there were four of them, which
had formed part of a family hatched in a hollow plum-tree : I found them quarrel-
some above all nestlings, clamorous, and voracious ; their call for food was chiir-
* The young are fed largely on green caterpillars, and I have watched a pair for a considerable time
incessantly travelling backw ards and forwards from their nest to a plantation of currant and gooseberry l)ushes,
each time bringing a mouthful of the caterpillars of the destructive little looping caterpillar of the V-moth
(Halia wavariaj.
Coal-Tit $
The Coal-Tit. 151
chur-chur-chur, chitr : they lived long enough to fly, and were becoming quite inter-
esting, when suddenly they all died off within two days ; having probably
swallowed some wadding from their bed, in their greediness after food dropped
upon it.
Family— PA RW^.
The Coal-Tit.
Parus ater, L-INN.
DR. SHARPE has separated the British race of this species under the name
of P. britannicus on account of the olive-brown tint of its upper back ; but
it would appear that the Continental form also occurs in Great Britain, as well as
intermediate grades between the grey and brown-backed forms. As a matter of
fact these differences, if they were constant, would be trifling as compared with the
far more defined local variations of our Yellow-Ammer, the male Kentish bird in
breeding plumage differing from that of some parts of Surrey, almost as much as
a Saffron-finch does from a Greenfinch.
On the Continent the Coal-Tit is generally distributed and resident throughout
central and southern Europe, extending northward in summer up to lat. 65°. In
Great Britain it is generally distributed, though local in Scotland, and not recorded
from the Outer Hebrides, Orkneys, or Shetlands.
The adult male has the head and throat blue-black, with the exception of a
white patch on the nape, and a much larger one extending from a little behind
the base of the bill below the eye to the neck ; back slaty-grey, more or less
suffused with olive-brown ; rump browner ; wings and tail greyish -brown ; median
and greater wing-coverts with white tips, forming two bars ; breast white, somewhat
sordid and gradually shading into buff-brownish on the belly and flanks ; bill black ;
152 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
feet leaden grey ; iris hazel. The female is duller in colour, the white patches
yellower. The young are more olivaceous above, and the white patches are suffused
with sulphur-yellow.
Fortunately this extremely charming species is becoming much more common
than it formerly was, in our islands ; so that it is no unusual occurrence, in the
autumn, to see a family sporting about among the trees of our suburban gardens ;
young Coal-Tits are wonderfully confiding ; so much so that, in the autumn
of 1895, I was able to stand under an Acacia in my garden, and watch these
pretty little birds going through their acrobatic performances, within two or three
feet of my head ; indeed, one or two of them, growing bolder as I remained quietly
observing them, descended to a slender branch within a foot, and peered down
and chattered at me in a most knowing manner — "' ick-heec, ick-Iiccc" is what thej''
seemed to say; but, to me, this appeared to mean " Who are you?" Probably
the same words, differently accented, represent a language intelligible to birds ; for
even we can sometimes comprehend its meaning ; as, for instance, when a Canary
asks for fresh seed, or for some dainty, the pleading tone is distinctly apparent.
The favourite haunts of this species are plantations, copses, thickets, and shrub-
beries, especially near open common or moorland ; no tree or evergreen escapes its
minute examination when in search of insect food ; though perhaps the conifers
form its favourite hunting-grounds. Its principal breeding-grounds are said to be
birch, pine, and fir- plantations, and alder-swamps ; but all the nests which I have
met with have been either in hollow orchard-trees or behind ivy-grown trellis-work
on summer-houses, or garden walls. The site for the nest is usually in a hole in
the trunk of a tree, or in a stump in a hedge, but it has been found in a hole
in the earth among the roots of a felled tree-trunk, and Lord Lilford states that
most of the nests which he has examined were placed underground in the burrows
of rabbits, moles, or mice.
The nest consists chiefly of a thick but loose lining to the selected cavity,
sometimes covering only the bottom of the hole, sometimes the sides also ; and,
when more or less exposed behind trellis-work, over-arched, with the entrance in
front : I have not taken enough nests of this species to be sure of the number of
a full clutch of eggs; but, as different authorities mention the numbers 5, 6, 7, 8,
and 9, I strongly suspect that the full number is either eight or ten, though rarely
the latter : many nests are undoubtedly taken by egg-collectors before the comple-
tion of the clutch, and I have taken nine young birds and an addled &gg from
the same nest.
The materials of the nest consist of moss, wool, or hair, with a thick inner
lining of feathers.
The Coal-Tit. 153
The eggs are somewhat elongated ovals, sometimes with the two ends alike,
chalky-white when blown, though semi-transparent and appearing delicate rose-pink
when fresh from the nest ; the surface is more or less sprinkled with pale-red dots,
which occasionally are collected into a mass at the larger end ; but, as a rule the
eggs of the Coal-Tit are not heavily marked.
The young, as with the other Tits, are principally fed upon small caterpillars
and spiders ; of which vast quantities are destroyed during the rearing of a family.
Little does the fruit-grower imagine, when he slaughters this amiable little bird,
what a vast debt of gratitude he owes it, for the countless destructive caterpillars
which it has cleared off his trees and bushes. When adult, insects, their larvae,
spiders, beech nuts,* seeds and buds : they are also very fond of mutton suet, or
the scraps of meat adhering to a well-cleaned beef-bone.
What is the love-song of the Coal-Tit ? According to some writers it is a
repetition of the call-note ; but, whilst lying awake in the early morning, I have
heard a Tit sing in the oak-tree in front of my house, which certainly was neither
a Great- Tit, nor a Blue-Tit ; and its song was — tee, tsoo-tsoo, terry, as nearly
as I could make out at the time : I believe this to be the Coal-Tit's love-song, but
am not sure. The songs of birds, which are now being studied critically by Mr.
Charles A. Witchell, have, until recently', not received half the attention which
they deserve.
The call of the young for food certainly bears no relation whatever to the
ordinary call-note or to the above song; in June, 1888, I heard of a nest of young
Tits in a cemetery in Kent, and visited it with Mr. Frohawk ; we caught the
mother bird on the nest and then took out nine young birds and a clear ^^%. I
enclosed the entire family in a cage with the mother and gave her some wasp-larvse
to feed them with ; but, although Tits are very industrious and painstaking in
feeding their young when they have their liberty, I soon saw that it was hopeless
to expect anything of the kind in a cage ; the mother-bird simply devoured all the
maggots herself and trampled her babies underfoot in her frantic efforts to escape :
I therefore opened the cage-door at an open window and away she flew without
another thought as to the fate of her family.
For a week, during which time I was able to attend to my Coal-Tits person-
ally, they throve splendidly ; but unhappily I had to return to work and leave
them in the care of a 3'oung girl who, in those days, used to come in daily and
attend to my birds ; the consequence was that these charming little things were
neglected, being allowed to get dirty ; so that gradually they dropped off, one or
• I saw the Coal-Tit busy upon these at vSt. Mary Cray, some five or six years ago, when I was out for a
country ramble in that direction.
154 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
two in a day, until all were gone. I was a good deal grieved to lose these
charming little birds ; they were so lively and amusing. The moment that the lid
of the basket in which I kept them was lifted, all nine sprang on to the edge,
and standing in a row, shouted at their loudest — " Chukha, chiitchurr ; Chutcha,
chiik/iiirr,'" incessantly, until the feeding was over ; then in a moment they scattered,
hopping in every direction ; some were on my arm, some on my shoulder, others
on my head — and a nice little job it was to collect and restore them all to their
flannel nest in the basket. Sometimes my wife fed them, and if they did not keep
in a row, she used to push the rowdy ones back gently before feeding ; so that in
a day or so they quite understood and stood up exactly like a class of charity
children in uniform saying a lesson : it was a very pretty sight and I quite missed
the little things when they died. Poor little mites ! it would have been far better
to have left them in their parents' care; but, I didn't know that at the time.
Family— PARIDAi.
The Marsh-Tit.
Parus palustris, Linn.
LOCAL as this resident Titmouse is in the British Isles, it is not uncommonly
^ captured in the autumn by the Bird-catchers ; but, unfortunately these men
rarely take the trouble to bring them to Aviculturists ; but either kill them, or let
them go, according to their nature ; some of the men who adopt this method of
adding to their earnings being really fond of birds and quite intelligent, whilst
others are mere savages.
This species is distribiited throughout central, and the greater part of western
Europe, down to the Pyrenees ; it is local in Spain, and rare in southern Italy and
Greece. British specimens, on account of the somewhat browner colouring of the
(^rc^o..^^
Marsh-Tit i 2
4
The Marsh-Tit. 155
upper surface, as compared with those of the Continent, have received the varietal
name of dresseri. Our Marsh-Tit is less frequently seen than most of our species,
though not uncommon in suitable localities, both in England and Wales ; but in
Scotland and Ireland it is extremely local.
The adult Marsh-Tit has the forehead, crown and nape glossy-black, to a line
below the eye from base of upper mandible ; back greyish-brown, slightly cupreous
in a bright light, paler on the rump and upper tail-coverts ; wings and tail smoky-
brown, slightly browner along the outer webs of the feathers ; chin and throat
black ; cheeks ashy-white ; remainder of under parts ashy, suffused with bufifish-
brown on the sides, flanks, thighs, and vent ; flights and tail below ash-grey ; bill
black; feet leaden-grey; iris dark-brown. The sexes are very similar; but the
young are duller and somewhat browner.
Although often found in the neighbourhood of marshes, this Tit is by no
means strictly conflned to moist situations ; for I have not unfrequently seen it in
my own garden at Beckenham, though more frequently in the autumn than at
other seasons, and often in company with Blue-Tits : its song is not of much
account — tsiz-tsiz-tsiz, chee, and the call-note a rapidly repeated chay, chay, cliay, chay ;*
ill spring it is also said to utter a loud double note somewhat resembling the
ordinary wheelbarrow note of the Great Tit ; but this I have never been able to
confirm ; though I may have heard the note without recognising its author : but
from what I have seen of this species, both wild and in confinement, I should
judge it *to be less noisy than other Tits.
In disposition the Marsh-Tit is gentle, confiding and lively : in its actions,
flight, method of feeding and the nature of its food, it corresponds closely with
its congeners ; but I found it a more inveterate bather, which may perhaps account
for its preferring the vicinity of water. According to Lord Lilford this bird is
less often to be found amongst high trees than our other species.
Although a resident bird, the numbers of our British bred Marsh-Tits are
largely increased by autumn immigration, the arrivals again taking their departure
early in the succeeding spring.
Stevenson, in his " Birds of Norfolk" gives the following interesting account:
" Though commonly met with by rivers and streams and in other low and damp
situations, it is also found in our fir plantations and in gardens and orchards far
from any water, where, in autumn, they feed on the seeds of various berries, being
particularly partial to those of the snowberry shrub fSympkoria racemosaj. Before I
discovered the actual depredators I had often observed that the berries on these shrubs
in my garden disappeared very rapidl}', and, moreover, that the berries themselves
* In Yarrell, it is reudered peh, peh ; but it is chay or isay in ni}- opinion.
156 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
were strewed about under the neighbouring trees. I was quite at a loss to account
for this, until one morning I observed a Marsh Titmouse flying across the grass-
plot with a white ball, almost as big as his head, on the point of his bill. He
looked so oddl}- at the moment I could scarcely at first sight determine either the
bird or its burthen, but as soon as he alighted on an opposite tree he gave a little
wrench with his beak, and dropping the husk at the time, flew off direct to the
snowberry bush. The whole thing was now explained, and as I watched, another
Titmouse joined the first, and these continued as long as I had time to wait,
carrying off" the berries on the ends of their bills to the same tree opposite, where
they opened and dropped the husks, then back again for more. On picking up
these husks afterwards, I found each of them split open down the side, and minus
the two little kidney-shaped seeds that grow in either half of the white fruit."
The Marsh-Tit visually nests in holes in trees and near to the ground, after
the manner of the Coal-Tit, and, like some of our other species, it has been known
to make a hole for itself in a decayed tree ; it has also been known to build like
a Tree-Creeper behind loosened bark, and nests have been found in mouse or rat-
burrows in banks.
Lord Lilford observes that " Both nest and eggs may easil}^ be mistaken for
those of the more common Coal-Tit, but the present species sometimes makes iise
of willow-down as a lining, and, so far as I know, never employs feathers for that
purpose. The eggs are from five to seven or eight in number."
Seebohm says : — " Occasionally it breeds in a pollard willow, and has even
been known to build in a rabbit-burrow or an old rat's hole. The inside of the
hole, if too deep, is filled up with bits of wood or small twigs, and upon this
foundation a moderately neat nest is composed of moss, wool, hair, and any other
soft material that may be within reach. Fresh eggs may be found in May ; and
it is said that a second brood is often reared. The number varies from five to
eight, and some writers say even twelve ; but no such case has ever come under
my notice. They are white with a scarcely perceptible yellowish tinge in ground-
colour, spotted and speckled with light red. The markings are usually most
numerous on the large end of the egg."
I have not personally taken this nest ; but, if it were more abundant, I should
expect to find that the number of eggs in a full clutch would vary from eight to
ten, the former being the usual number.
About August, 1890, a bird-catcher brought me a pair of Marsh-Tits which he
had caught at Beckenham in his nets. I turned these birds out with a number
of Finches which occupied one of my aviaries ; and, after a day or two, they were
quite at home. Unfortunately that particular aviary was then arranged for pictur-
Blue Tit i <?
The Blue-Tit. 157
esque effect, with rockery, a shelving shingly bank and a rather deep stream some
fourteen feet in length. Such attempts to imitate nature are a mistake, unless the
rockery can be made of smooth slabs of solid stone easily cleaned, and even then
they are liable to harbo'ar mice. The result as regards my Marsh-Tits was, that
the hen bird when washing, one cold day in January, 1891, either got oitt of her
depth or was seized with cramp, and I found her floating dead on the surface of
the water: she was not the first victim, but her death decided me to abandon
artistic effect in aviaries.
The male bird lived some months longer, and made a perfectly innocent and
very pretty addition to my feathered family ; he fed principally upon seeds, nuts,
and suet ; but was always ready for spiders, as well as insects and their larvae
when they were procurable, and he ate a certain quantity, though not a great deal
of the usual soft food : he was never spiteful ; but, if a beef-bone was suspended in
the aviar}^ he would join a party of Siskins upon it in perfect amity : indeed,
unlike the Blue-Tit, he seemed unwilling to dispute over trifles, and if a Siskin
took a fancy to the position which he occupied on the bone, the Marsh-Tit
immediately yielded it up.
As regards longevity in captivity I cannot recommend this, or any of the Tits
to aviculturists ; possibly they require more insect-food than I was able to give
them ; but, at any rate, I never succeeded in keeping any of these birds for much
over a year ; and most of them, when opened after death, were clearly proved to
have died from phthisis.
Family— PA RID AL.
The Blue-Tit.
Parus ccenileus, LiNN. •
DISTRIBUTED over the whole of temperate and southern Europe, as far
east as the Ural Mountains and the Caucasus. In Norway, owing to the
comparative mildness of the climate, it is found as far north as lat. 64°; but in
Vol. I. 2D
158 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Russia it lias not yet been obtained further north than lat. 6i°." — Seebo/im.
Pretty generally distributed in Great Britain, but rare and local in the north-
west of Scotland, not recorded from the Hebrides, and in the Orkneys and Shetlands
only a chance visitor.
The Blue-Tit is one of the most beautiful of our small birds ; it has the crown
of the head smalt-blue, completely encircled by a white stripe, commencing on the
forehead, passing over each eye, and into a bracket-shaped line across the back of
the head ; behind the latter, at back of head, is a belt of indigo which widens at
the sides of the neck and divides, its upper ramus passing through the eye to the
base of the bill and the lower forming a belt round the sides of the neck, and
uniting with a triangular black patch which occupies the throat and chin ; cheeks
and ear coverts white ; nape bluish-ash, whitish in the centre, remainder of body
above yellowish-green ; wings and tail blue, the greater wing coverts tipped with
white ; breast and abdomen sulphur-yellow, with a more or less defined central
longitudinal black stripe ; flights and tail-feathers below ash-grey ; bill smoky, paler
at junction of mandibular edges ; feet deep bluish-leaden, inclining to black ; iris
dark brown. The female is altogether somewhat duller than the male, the cheeks
slightly ashy and the under parts suffused with olive-greenish. The young are
still duller, the blue being less pronounced, and the plumage generally more
yellow.
Most observant people are familiar with the Blue-Tit, or Tom-Tit as it is
frequently called ; yet I have had it described to me as "a foreign bird, evidently
escaped from some aviary," which shows that even in this enlightened age, there
are individuals whose eyes are closed to the beauties which abound on every side
of them. In its habits this species does not greatly differ from its congeners :
wherever trees are it may be seen in more or less abundance, whether in forest,
plantation, orchard, shrubbery, garden, or hedgerow, and everywhere its various
calls may be heard as it searches the twigs and branches for food or amuses itself
in stripping off buds and leaves. Suddenly one of these mites leaves a tree and
with imdulating flight crosses the open to some new field of operations, and
immediately all the Tits in that tree are after him in a wavering stream anxious
to see what he is about.
The love-song of the Blue-Tit is not at all like its call-notes : I carefully took
it down, and went over it note by note, as a bird in the next garden repeated it :
this song was — Tee-tit-tit-twee, tee-te-twee, tee-te-twee ; I have also heard it sing — IVee,
wee, wee, tit-tit-titta:* the call-note however is tsee, tsee, tsee, and the call of the young
* One of the commonest songs of the Blue-Tit consists of two or three shrill notes, followed by a descend-
ing trill.
The Blue-Tit. 159
chee-zek, or sometimes te-uzza, ckee-zek ; the scolding-note is a sort of diminutive
chatter, Seebohm calls it "a harsh chattering note" which I think describes it
very aptly.
In its food this bird is almost omnivorous ; insects of all kinds (no matter how
large) and caterpillars, spiders, centipedes, fat, the brains of its sickly relatives,
fruit, nuts, seeds, bread, potato : all are eaten with relish. In winter, if a bone,
with a few fragments of meat adhering, is hung up, the Blue-Tit is not the most
backward of its family in taking advantage of it : it feeds its young on caterpillars,
chiefly of the V-moth.*
The nest is placed in all kinds of situations : in holes in trees, walls, banks,
gravel-pits or gate-posts, in lamp-posts, old pumps, in niches in out-houses, on tops
of walls under overhanging thatches, and behind lattice-work of summer-houses :
but, whatever the cavity selected, it is thickly lined at the bottom, often at the
sides, and (when exposed behind lattice-work) over-arched, with moss, dead leaves,
dried grass, feathers, and cobweb : the nest thus formed is entered either from the
top or front according to its method of construction ; a thick bed of feathers forms
the inner lining. The eggs, according to my experience, vary in number from
eight to ten for a full clutch, eight being the usual complement ; but some writers
have asserted positively that they have found twelve and even as many as eighteen
in a nest ; in all such cases I should strongly suspect that two hen birds had
deposited in the same nest : ten is not a common number for I have only once
found a Blue-Tit on so many eggs ; on one other occasion I took ten young ones
out of a nest out of curiosit3% and then replaced them. I should therefore regard
a Blue-Tit which laid twelve eggs as a phenomenon of fecundity, and one reported
as laying eighteen as a myth.
In colouring the eggs are snow-white, with the usual pink transparent glow
when freshly deposited : in spotting they differ not a little ; some eggs at first
sight appearing to be immaculate, but when closely examined revealing numerous
dust-like specks of light red and dark grey, principally confined to the larger end ;
a second variety is pretty evenly sprinkled all over with rust-red dots ; a third
form shows larger spots scattered amongst the smaller markings ; a fourth differs
from the latter in the presence of splashes of red at the larger end ; finall}^ I have
taken specimens in which grey and red-brown spots are massed into a dark zonal
patch at the larger end. Some of the eggs which I have found, excepting that
they are perhaps a trifle longer, could not be distinguished from those of the
Willow-Warbler; and others, excepting that they are a size smaller, might easil}^
* This being a Gooseberr3-nioth, the blunder has been made of crediting the Blue-Tit with eating cater-
pillars of "the Gooseberr>--moth " : I know of no British bird which will touch this caterpillar.
^
ifo British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
be mistaken for those of the Wren. It is not therefore safe to identify eggs of
this species, unless yon have taken them yourself; and, on no account should the
statements of peasants be credited for a moment ; since they almost invariably
confound the Blue-Tit and the Wren.
There is never any difficulty in identifying the eggs of Tits which one takes,
because the mother bird is usually in the nest and never far away : many a time
in spite of her hissing and pecking I have lifted her off her eggs and held her in
one hand whilst I examined the collection to see whether it was in condition for
preservation or too far incubated : if the latter, I had only to open my hand to
see her at once return to her duty.
I know of no other bird which sits so closely as the Blue-Tit : in my " Hand-
book of British Oology" I have recorded the fact that on the 27th June, 1881, I
found the nest of this species in a cavity left by the removal of a brick in an
outhouse, where the gardener of the place kept his tools. The nest, when I
discovered it, contained four eggs only ; perhaps it was the last effort for the
season, for no more were laid. Each day I took one egg, but substituted a marble
for the last one, on which the Tit was contented to sit ; after three or four days
I removed the marble, and, a day or two later, the nest : what then was my
astonishment, about two days afterwards, to find the stupid bird still squatting in
the hole in the wall ; she had the sitting fever on her and meant to sit it out !
In June, 1889, a nest of ten young Blue-Tits was sent to me, one of which
unhappily came to hand with a broken leg : instead of nipping off the swinging
tarsus with a sharp pair of scissors (as I ought to have done) I bound up the
limb with worsted, the poor little mite looking up in my face all the time, and
repeatedly saying in a most piteous voice, or so it seemed to me at the time —
" Ye mustn't forget." The leg united and formed a stiff joint, but unfortunately
the claws got in the bird's way when it attempted to fly, so that at last its chief
pleasures consisted of eating and bathing, and one morning I found it sitting up
dead in its bath ; possibly a cramp may have attacked its one useful leg and kept
it in the cold water until the chill had killed it. Of the remainder two died the
day after I received them, one a month later, and a fifth was still delicate at the
end of July ; the five others by this time were quite independent, were as tame as
white mice and infinitely more amusing (indeed for several months they formed
the principal attraction to my visitors) they used all to come down upon me the
moment I entered the aviary, evidently regarding me as a museum of curiosities
especially designed for their delectation. They would all sit together feeding out
of the palm of my hand ; only, every now and then, they would hop on to one of
my fingers and begin to hammer at the quick of the nail, which compelled me
■^ -^/Z-
Crested Tit. s 2
The Crested Tit. i6i
to interfere ; then all five would fly up to the rim of my wideawake and hop
round, trying to pull the ribbon to pieces ; next I should feel one drop to my
shoulder, when it would hop to the collar of my coat and pull my ear, or my
hair. Another favourite occupation was, to start from the bottom of my waistcoat
and carefully examine and test every button, pull at my watchchain, peck at
the outer rim of each pocket, then back to my hand, whence they would travel
by little zigzag hops along my arm to my shoulder.
Seeing how tame these hand-reared Tits were, I caught twenty others, which
I turned in with them ; and, although these also became tame enough to feed
from my hand, they never acquired the confidence of my nestlings. Alas ! charming
as these birds were, they were short-lived : I had provided numerous warmly
furnished boxes for them to retire to at night, but they would not behave in
an aviar^' as they do out of doors, each claimed its own box and fought all
would-be intruders ; so that, as the nights grew colder, they were quite unable
to keep warm, and dropped off one at a time : moreover, no sooner did one
of them become ill and lie in bed in the morning, than callers began to drop
in to breakfast (not with the invalid, but) upon its brains : this I proved
repeatedl}'. Out of doors the whole family would have crept into one hole, or
into the warmer side of a haystack, and all would probably have survived ; but
good living made them selfish and high-minded, and disaster followed. On the
15th December only one remained alive, and a severe frost, lasting for twenty-
two days, in the early part of 1890, killed him: I have given up keeping Blue-
Tits since that time.
Family— PARWyS.
The Crested Tit.
Parus cri status, L,INN.
NEVER having personally met with this extremely local species, I am com-
pelled to base my account of it entirel}'^ upon the writings of others ; a
course which, when possible, it is always best to avoid.
Vol. I. 2 E "
i63 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs
As regards its distribution on the Continent, Howard Saunders writes: — " The
Crested Titmouse inhabits the pine-forests of Scandinavia and Russia to about
64° N. lat. ; and eastward it can be traced as far as the valleys of the Don and
the Volga. In Germany, wherever conifers are plentiful, and in the higher districts
of France, the bird is to be found in tolerable abundance ; it also breeds in Dutch
Brabant, principally in oak-trees, for it is by no means restricted to firs ; and in the
Alps, Carpathians, and other ranges of Central Europe it is generally distributed.
In some parts of the Higher Pyrenees I found it the most abundant of the genus ;
while in the south of France and in Spain it may often be observed among trees
close by the sea. In the latter country it breeds in the cork-woods in the vicinity
of Gibraltar, as well as on higher ground ; and it is also common in Portugal."
Respecting its distribution in Great Britain, Seebohm says : — " Its only known
breeding- grounds in the British Islands are in Scotland, in the valley of the Spey
and in the adjoining counties of Ross and Inverness on the west, and Aberdeen
on the east. In winter its distribution is a little more extended, and Mr. Gray
remarks that it has been obtained as far south as Perthshire. In the western
counties of Scotland but two specimens have been obtained — one in 1838, near
Barcaldine House in Argyleshire, and another, of which the exact date is not
known, taken near Dumbarton."
" In England, Mr. Harting, in his ' Handbook,' records eight instances of its
occurrence; Mr. Simpson records another in the 'Zoologist' for 1872, p. 3021, and
Baron Von Hiigel one more specimen in the same periodical for 1874, p. 4065."
As to the reputed occurrence of two specimens of the Crested Tit in Ireland,
authorities are not agreed ; therefore it is safest to doubt.
The male Crested Tit, when adult, has the feathers of the head black, margined
with ashy- white ; those from the crow^n backwards elongated so as to form a well-
defined crest ; from the nape backwards the upper parts are olivaceous-brown, the
flights and tail being smoky-brown ; face white, mottled with black ; a black stripe
from the base of the bill, throiigh the eye to the back of the head and thence
descending, so as to bound the ear-coverts and cheeks ; behind this is a white band
again bounded by a black stripe which crosses over the back of the head, round
the neck and unites with a black gorget which occupies the centre of the chin,
throat, and breast ; remainder of under parts sordid- white, siiffused at the sides
with brownish-buff; bill black; feet leaden- grey ; iris brown.
The female differs from the male in its shorter crest and more restricted
throat-patch : the young are similar, but with still shorter crest.
The Crested Tit breeds throughout the pine-forests of Europe ; but it is also
said to frequent birch-plantations. Seebohm informs us that " in autumn it partially
The Crested Tit. 163
forsakes the pine- forests, where it breeds, and is seen in winter in many of the
small woods and plantations, and even the gardens, in the neighbouring districts ;
but even in these localities it prefers the pine to any other tree."
It is curious that the Crested Tit should hitherto not have been met with in
Morocco ; but Dixon, in his " Birds of Algeria," observes : — " The Crested Titmouse,
Parus cristatus, may yet be found to inhabit the Algerian or Moroccan forests."
The call-note of this bird is said to be a rather weak si, si, si, followed by a
sort of trill which has been rendered pttir, re, re, re, ree : the call-note of many of
the Tits has been similarly rendered si, si, si; but when carefully analyzed it
resolves itself into isay, or chee, or (see: in any case it is probable that the combi-
nation of si, si, si, with a terminal trill represents the song, and a single sharp si
or tsee the call-note (of course this opinion is only based upon observation of other
species, and may be incorrect).
In the south-west of France the nest is stated to be usually placed behind
the loosened bark of pine-trees ; in Germany in deserted nests of Crows, Magpies,
or Squirrels ; and in Scotland, in holes bored into rotten fir-stumps, at altitudes
of from two to eight feet above the ground ; sometimes it is said to lay its eggs
in deserted Wren's nests, but as it has also been stated that it sometimes builds
a nest of this character itself (which a study of the other species of Parus would
lead one to believe highly probable) the observation respecting its occupation of
Wren's nests may be erroneous, and should only be accepted after full confirmation.
At the same time, it is likely enough, if its own nest were destroyed just when
it was laying, that it would utilize such a structure ; inasmuch as, I have even
found eggs of the Blue-Tit, upon which the mother bird was sitting, in a Sand-
Martin's nest.*
The nest itself is formed of the usual materials — moss, dry grass, wool, feathers,
and fur ; constructed generally about the end of April, or beginning of May. The
eggs are said to number from four to eight, the full clutch probably would be
from six to eight, if one may judge from its congeners. In colouring they seem
to vary much as in the other species ; they are white, spotted and speckled with
brownish or sienna-red, sometimes all over, sometimes in blotches, or with a zone
towards the larger end, occasionally with an irregular patch at that end.
It is very probable that, in Germany, this species may be kept as a cage-bird,
but in England I have never seen it in confinement ; Swaysland, however, speaks
of it as " a very desirable addition to an aviary of Tits," therefore he may possibly
have been more fortunate.
* I took this nest for my collection; and, as it contained only three slightly incubated eggs, it is certain
that the first part of the clutch had been previously deposited elsewhere.
i64 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
FAMILY SITTID^.
THIS group is represented in Great Britain by onl}^ one species, which Seebohm
regarded nierel}- as an aberrant genus of Tits ; but he stated rightl}^ that
" In their habits they resemble the Woodpeckers and the Creepers more than the
true Tits." Nevertheless in their activity and many of their actions Nuthatches are
very Tit-like : so also, in the strength of their bills and feet, the position and
covering of the nostrils, their short first primary, scutellated tarsi and hooked
hind-claw, they show Parine aflSnities, whilst their eggs are extremely Tit-like iu
character.
Our Nuthatch, though it approaches the Titmice, could never be confounded
with them ; it has more nearly the aspect of a dull washed-out Liothrix, yet with
a little longer bill : it seems therefore far better to follow Howard Saunders, and
regard it as the representation of a distinct, though allied, family. In one respect
it differs very widely from the Tits in habits, and that is in its use of clay to
lessen the size of a hole containing its nest, and the very meagre character of the
nest itself.
In Vol. VIII of the " Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum," Dr. Gadow
regards the Nuthatches as a Subfamily of the Creepers fCerthiidaJ , practically
ignoring the affinity of the former to the Titmice ; but, apart from the total
dissimilarity in the bills of the Creepers and Nuthatches, the latter are decidedly
less insectivorous, and their manner of sitting across a branch to crack a nut, is
infinitely more suggestive of a Tit than a Creeper ; whilst their softer shorter tails,
stouter legs, and the character of their nostrils, serve at once to distinguish them
from the Certhiida.
As a student of Bird-life, rather than of Bird-mummies, the convenience of a
distinct family for the Niithatch commends itself to the writer.
( - - .■■ —
Nuthatch i
The Nuthatch 165
Family— SITTID^.
The Nuthatch.
Sitta casta, WOLF.
THE British race is found on the Continent northward as far as Jutland ; it
is generally distributed from the Baltic southwards to the Mediterranean
and Black Seas, and is said to occur in Algeria and Morocco ; eastwards its range
is uncertain.
In England it is pretty generally distributed, being common in well-wooded
districts of the southern and central counties, but in the northern counties it is
much rarer and more local ; in Scotland it has occurred three or four times, but
in Ireland it appears to be unknown.
The male Nuthatch, when adult, has the upper parts slate-grey, the flights
smoky-brown, with greyer margins ; two central tail feathers slate-grey, remaining
feathers with the basal three-fourths black, then crossed by a white bar, beyond
which they are grey : a black stripe from base of upper mandible, through the
eye, to the side of the neck separating the grey of the crown and nape from the
buffish-white cheeks, ear-coverts, chin, and front of throat ; remainder of under
surface buff, streaked and shaded with deep chestnut on the flanks and sides of
under tail-coverts, the centre of the latter being whitish ; bill leaden-grey, the
lower mandible paler, but especially at the base ; feet brown ; iris hazel.
The female is a little duller than the male, the chestnut on the flanks being
less pronounced ; the young are still duller, and paler on the flanks.
Restless, indefatigable, quick in its actions, the Nuthatch may be seen running
upwards or downwards like a mouse over the rugged trunks of lofty trees, frequently
travelling in jerky zigzag fashion, searching in every crack and cranny for insect
food ; yet, unlike orthodox good children, the Nuthatch is much more frequently
heard than seen, for it is of a very modest and retiring disposition.
Stevenson observes respecting this species : — " much amusement has been
afforded me, after discovering their haunts, by placing nuts, or their kernels only,
in such situations as would enable me to watch the actions of these birds. In
confinement the young become very tame, and from their activity and quaintness
in every movement are most engaging pets, but sadly destructive to any woodwork
i66 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
within tlieir reach. If constantly supplied with fresh bark, they never tire of
searching each corner and crevice for insect food, clinging to it in every imagin-
able attitude with their strong claws whilst beating all the while with their beaks
a very ' devil's tattoo,' unpleasantly suggestive, in its persistent monotony, of the
busiest moments of a coflEn-maker."
The Nuthatch is one of our early breeders, iisually commencing to build
about the middle of April; the site chosen is most frequently a hole in a tree,
generally in a branch, but sometimes close to the ground ; a hole in a wall is not
infrequently chosen, and rarely in the side of a haystack ; the single recorded nest
of this type in the British Museum having been mentioned by almost every writer
on British Birds, on account apparently of its weight : the entrance to the hole,
in which the apology for a nest is placed, being always filled up with clay until
only a small aperture is left for the passage of the birds in and out. Lord Lilford
speaks of their using also old mortar or cement, which they must somehow have
managed to moisten and render serviceable ; possibly they mixed it with wet clay.
The nest itself consists merely of a few leaves, often of oak ; a few scales of
fir-bark ; or a little dry grass ; at some distance from the entrance to the hole.
The eggs, which vary in number from five to eight, very closely resemble those
of the Great Tit, but are larger and frequently with deeper red-brown spots, bolder
in character and intermixed with lavender or greyish shell-spots : the different
forms of the egg are just what one finds among the Tits, the spots larger or
smaller, evenly distributed, massed in a zone near the larger end, or forming an
irregular patch at that end.
The song of the Nuthatch consists of a prolonged soft whistle, followed by a
bubbling twitter ; but its call-note is a shrill whit-whit. The food in summer
principally consists of insects, in search of which it sometimes comes in contact
with various Tits or even the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, towards which it ex-
hibits its very pugnacious disposition. In the autumn, when insects are becoming
scarce, it turns to nuts, beech-mast, seeds of conifers, and berries ; and in the
winter it will approach houses to feed on refuse scraps.
As a cage-bird the Nuthatch is constantly increasing in popularity ; as the
numbers now exhibited at our shows testify. When reared from the nest it
becomes just as tame and confiding as the species of Tits, running over and
examining its owner in the same manner ; but even adult birds caught wild,
although at first they show impatience of captivity after the manner of all the
Tit-like birds, do not (as Seebohm asserts) necessarily die on that account : perhaps
if kept in a small cage the violent blows which they deal in their frantic rage at close
confinement after liberty, may injure the front of the skull and thus produce death;
The Wren. 167
but this is also the case with the Great Tit when similarly treated. The best
plan with all these birds when first captured is to give them plenty of room in a
box-cage, the back of which should be covered with virgin-cork, behind which
(when alarmed) they may retire. For a day or two it is well to cover the front
of the cage with muslin, which renders all newly caught birds less liable to attempt
escape in that direction ; gradually accustom them to your presence, always offering
them delicacies until they learn to trust you : for as Lord Lilford says : — " The
kernel of a hazel or ground-nut is an irresistible morsel, and will tempt an old
wild-caught Nuthatch to snatch it from the fingers very soon after capture."
FAMILY TROGLODYTID^.
THE Wrens are represented in Great Britain by one species only ; the St. Kilda
Wren, to which Mr. Seebohm gave the name of T. hirtensis, being now
considered a mere local variation, and inseparable from some of those found on
the Continent.
Dr. Sharpe regards the Wrens as a mere Subfamily of the Timcliida (Babbling
Thrushes) remarking,* " In their habits and in their form the Wrens are essentially
Timeliine. They possess the strong, even clumsy, legs and concave rounded wings
which distinguish this group of birds, and they do not migrate, as a rule. The
nests are generally domed, and hence one of the reasons for retaining the Dippers
in the family. The principal characteristic, however, of a Wren, and one that
separates them from the true Timeliine birds, is the almost entire absence of rictal
bristles."
Seebohm, on the other hand regards the Wrens as aberrant Tits ; so far as I
can make out, solely on the ground that their eggs are almost identical : he admits
that they are " Timeliine in their habits, skulking in underwood, and without
undulation in their flight."
Doubtless the affinities of the Wren are rather Timeliine than Parine ; but
most students of British Birds are not familiar with Bulbuls, Shamas, and the
* "Catalogue of Birds," vol. VI., p. 180.
i6s British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
like ; moreover, if they were, they would probably fail to see any resemblance
between the long-tailed, stout-billed, conical-crested Persian, or Red-vented Bulbuls,*
and our stumpy little cock-tailed Wren, whilst the cave-like nest of the latter, if
it be an argument in favour of the affinity of the Dipper to the Wrens, must also
argue against the close relationship of the Bulbuls to the latter birds.
The most convenient plan, therefore, seems to be that adopted by Mr. Howard
Saunders — to regard the Wrens as a Family rather than a Subfamily.
Family— TROGL OD YTIDyE.
The Wren.
Troglodytes pai"vulus, KocH.
OCCURS throughout Europe up to 65° N. lat. in Scandinavia and North
Russia, occurring in Morocco and Algeria, also in the Caucasus, Northern
Persia, Asia Minor, and Northern Palestine.
In Great Britain it is generally distributed and resident ; but, as with many
more resident species, its numbers are greatly added to in the autumn by immi-
gration.
The adult male has the upper surface rich rufous-brown, the crown and nape
appearing slightly darker ; thence barred throughout with deeper brown ; the
primaries brighter, their outer webs barred with pale-buif; a huffish- white streak
over the eye ; imder surface pale-brownish, more rufous and darker on the flanks,
belly, and under tail-coverts, which are also barred with smoky-brown ; bill dark-
brown above, paler below ; feet pale-brown ; iris dark-brown. The female is slightly
smaller, duller in colouring, with paler legs. Young birds are slightly more rufous
and less strongly barred.
From its remarkably confiding habits the Wren has become as well known as
* The crests of these birds are not ragged, as usuall)' shown in illustrations, but form a regular unbroken
line at the back.
r
Wren, i ?
i
The Wren. 169
the Robin ; and, incredible as it may seem, there are still many persons living who
believe it to be the female of that familiar bird ; their study of Natural History
has apparently ceased from the period when they let go of their nurse's apron-
string, and the old rhyme — " Cock Robin and Jenny Wren, are God A'mighty's
cock and hen," is regarded by them as inspired truth. Ciiriously enough, whereas
the Robin seems to be everywhere held in superstitious reverence, the poor little
Wren is remorselessly hunted to death in Ireland, the Isle of Man, and the south
of France, for no better reason.
Althoiigh bold and fearless in the winter, the Wren is more frequently heard
than seen in the summer months ; although, in the spring, I have seen it sitting
in a low tree singing merrily enough : the song bears some resemblance to that
of the Hedge- Sparrow, but is much more varied, more rapid, and usually terminates
in a trill : the call is tsit-sit-sit, often repeated over and over again, as the little
bird drops from twig to twig in the cover. Excepting when feeding the young,
and when moulting, the Wren's song may always be heard ; it is loud and brilliant,
rather than melodious. •
When breeding, and it is an early breeder, there is no British bird more
jealous of its nest : to be seen watching a Wren at work is often suiScient to
condemn the half-completed building, a fact which I have proved by actual
experiment : this excessive nervousness is probably the sole cause for the many
imperfect or deserted nests which occur, and which are supposed by rustics to be
purposely constructed as roosting-places for the male birds. But, after all, the
same notion has been countenanced, even by scientific men, respecting the incom-
plete nests formed by unpaired males of the Baya Weaver ; whereas, in the latter
case, the nest is always completed by the combined labours of both sexes, and
apparently cannot be managed by one sex unaided.
Only once was I ever successful in removing eggs from a Wren's nest,
without causing desertion ; and then I chanced to discover some small oval white
pebbles close to the gorse-bush in which the nest was suspended, and substituted
them for the eggs ; but I was very careful not to tovich the nest with my fingers,
using a metal spoon to remove the eggs. The hen bird was evidently far away
at the time ; for, had she seen me, I do not believe she would have continued to
lay ; as she certainly did.
I have found nests of the Wren built in the following sites : — in hedges ;
hawthorn-bushes ; furze ; laurels ; in ivy on walls, or clambering round the entrances
to caves or grottoes ; against trunks of trees, either openly near the ground or
higher iip in the trailing ivy ; in brambles and straggling scrub in woods, where
masses of the previous year's leaves have collected in the vines ; under overhanging
Vol. I. 2 F
17° British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
edges of steep banks ; in faggot-, clover-, or hay-stacks ; under projecting thatches
of sheds and outhouses ; upon a beam in a barn : but never in holes.
In the materials used for the nest, the Wren appears to select usually such
as will tend to conceal it ; the fact being that it builds very largely with those
which are most handy ; thus nests bedded in heaps of dead leaves are externally
largely constructed of leaves, those in evergreen shrubs are also usually formed of
dead leaves, those in trailing creepers in which dead leaves have lain until moss
has grown on them, are largely formed of the same rank moss ; but a nest against
the bare trunk of a tree is largely made up out of straws and stiff bents, the ends
of which can be forced behind the loosened bark to support the structure. In
form the nest is cave-like ; domed, spherical, or oblong, with entrance in front, the
lower edge of which is always strengthened with transverse twigs or stiff bents,
so as to form a sort of perch or door-step : the walls are thick and fairl}^ firm,
often formed of dry stalks and dead leaves, commingled with fibre ; but, in a barn
wholly of straw ; sometimes almost entirely of moss, whilst instances have been
recorded of nests formed entirely of clover. The inner lining consists, I believe
invariably, of a little moss and three or four soft feathers.
As regards the number of eggs in a nest, opinions differ ; chiefly, I imagine,
owing to the fact that collectors have trusted to rustics to obtain clutches for them,
instead of taking them invariably (as they should do) with their own hands : con-
sequently the average peasant who does not, as I have repeatedly proved, know
the difference between a Wren and a Blue-Tit, brings clutches of eggs from nests
of the latter, asserting that he took them from Wrens' nests.
In my experience the W^ren never lays more than six for a full clutch, and
I dare say that I have either taken, or examined without touching, something like
fifty nests ; therefore, if more than six are ever deposited, the number must be
very abnormal ; Seebohm's statement as to the number is probably based largely
upon the assertions of others, which have been copied from work to work : his first
observation "The eggs of the Wren vary from four to six" representing his
personal experience, but the continuation — "and even eight or nine in number"
with what follows, are probably not original, but must be traced to the fact that,
excepting in their slightly superior size, the eggs of the Wren (in all their
varieties) are extremely similar to those of the Blue-Tit. Mr. Frohawk has taken
many nests, but he tells me that he has never found more than six eggs.*
On the 31st September, 1887, a specimen of this species caught in my
large Thrush-trap, was placed in a Linnet-cage and immediately escaped through
* In 1896, at least two men who should be able to recognize a Wren's nest, wrote to the " Feathered
World" asserting that they had taken several clutches of seven eggs, during the past season, in the North; but,
even if this were proved, it would not alter the fact that the full clutch is usually six.
The Tree-Creeper. 171
the wires into my greenhouse, where it was so nimble in dodging iis, that a full
hour elapsed before it could be caught and placed in a large cage. In the evening
I found it asleep clinging to the wire netting, and in the morning it was dead.
Two or three years later I caught another, and turned it loose in an aviary sixteen
feet long, where it seemed perfectly at home at once, behaving quite naturally,
showing no alarm whatever, but examining the rockwork (then in the aviary) most
diligently, and extracting spiders from the various holes and crevices. Unhappily
I could not persuade this bird to eat anything but living insects, woodlice, and
spiders ; it would not look at soft food (of which there was plenty in the aviary)
but having devoured every spider, insect and woodlouse which it could find, it simply
starved itself to death : why a bird which, in winter, will join the Robins and
Sparrows round our houses to feed on bread-crumbs, and which is also said to eat
seeds and small fruits, should have refused to touch these articles of food, preferring
rather to die of inanition, is a mystery. Perhaps, though outwardly calm and
natural, this bird inwardly chafed at its captivity, and only living food had the
power to tempt it to eat. Anyway the conclusion to which my experience has led
me is — -If you would keep Wrens as pets, it is safest to rear them from the nest.
FAMILY CERTHIID^.
THIS group of birds is again referred to the Parina by Seebohm, who remarks
that " In their rounded wings, small bastard primary, scutellated tarsus, and
large feet with well developed hind toe, the species of this genus fCerthiaJ are
typical Parince:" yet, on the same page, he admits that "The Creepers are
somewhat aberrant members of the subfamily Parina,'" which seems a little
contradictory.
It appears to me that, in his classification of birds, Seebohm allowed himself
to be too much influenced by the character of the eggs ; although the admission of
Accentor among the Tits was a distinct deviation from this tendency. Much as
one respects and admires a man who upholds his own views in opposition to the
opinion of a majority, one does not feel bound to follow his lead, unless he can
bring forward convincing evidence in support of those views.
The Creepers differ from the Tits in their much longer bills with elongated
172 British Birds with their Nests and Eggs.
nostrils, tlie crown of the head never crested, the tail-feathers stiif and pointed
like those of the Woodpeckers, which they also much resemble in their habits :
they are distinctly more insectivorous than Tits ; and, in their search for food, are
more strictly arboreal in their habits, confining their attentions chiefly to the trunks
and larger branches of trees, round which they run in a spiral curve.
Our Tree-Creeper, even in its nidification cannot strictly be said to resemble
the Tits : certainly I never discovered true Titmice building their nests behind
loosened bark : indeed Seebohm himself admits that " their nests are all either
loosely made in holes of trees and walls, or suspended from the branches." Dr.
Gadow, however, says that the Cciihiida. nest in holes ; but, even admitting this, the
nidification of the Creepers does not prove their affinity to the Tits, any more than
that of the Woodpeckers evidences their relationship to the Parrots.
Family— CER THIIDAL.
The Tree-Creeper.
Certhia familiaris, LiNN.
RESPECTING the geographical distribution of this species Dr. Gadow says
that " it inhabits nearly all the Palaearctic and Nearctic regions. It is
found from Ireland and Spain to Norway, Palestine, Persia, Eastern Turkestan,
and Western China, being likewise found throughout Russia and the greater part
of Siberia. Still more to the eastwards it gradually loses much of the dark
colours, so that the white becomes predominant, and all the underparts, including
the under tail-coverts, become pure white. We may therefore look upon the birds
of Amoor-land, Eastern Siberia, and Japan as a pale race. I have, however, seen
specimens from Piedmont and South France fC. CostccJ in Mr. Dresser's collection
which are nearly as pale as the eastern birds. The Tree-Creepers in Canada, and
h-f-r-
Tree-Creeper. i
tf'
The Tree-Creeper. 173
in the United States, eastward of the Rocky Mountains, are like our European
form." *
In Great Britain it is pretty generally distributed, especially affecting well-
timbered districts ; it has not, however, been recorded from the Outer Hebrides.
When adult this species has the upper surface dark brown, with pale bufhsh
centres to the feathers, the lower back and rump more rufous ; wing-coverts tipped
with pale buff; flights dark brown with paler bars, the secondaries with huffish
white tips ; tail-feathers rufous brown with paler shafts ; a whitish superciliary
streak ; under surface silky white, the flanks and under tail-coverts suffused with
buff"; bill dark brown above, yellowish below; feet brown; iris hazel. Sexes
similar. The young have a much shorter and straight bill.
This interesting little resident bird, owing to its mouse-like manner of creep-
ing over the bark of trees, is often overlooked, for excepting when its conspicuous
white underparts come into view, as it passes rapidly round the side of a trunk, it
is not easily seen : moreover, I have noticed that, when it becomes aware of an
onlooker, it immediately slips round to the opposite side of the tree upon which
it is seeking its insect food, and then only its weak note cheet-ched reveals its
presence. In the outskirts of the Kentish woods,t I have once or twice caught a
glimpse of it rapidly traversing the trunk of some large tree in an ascending
spiral until it reached the branches, passing round one of these for a short distance
then fluttering with undulating downward flight, almost to the roots of another
tree, which it ascended in like manner; but I never could get very close to this
little bird until one autumn, when from my bedroom window, I saw two specimens
ascending the trunk of an oak-tree in my front garden and was able to note how
they stopped at every two or three feet to probe some crevice in the bark.
W. Warde Fowler, in his " Summer Studies of Birds and Books," has an
interesting note on the song of this bird as heard by him in Switzerland ; he
says : — " When I was last at Bern we did not stay there long, but went on in
the afternoon to the Hotel Bellevue at Thun, where there is an extensive garden.
Next morning I was out before breakfast in this garden, and soon heard a voice
that was new to me. If this happens after May, when all the foliage is out, I
know I may be teased for a while, and so it happened that morning. Wherever
I went, there was the mysterious voice — clearly that of a very small bird, feeble
and shrill, though contented and unobtrusive. Five little syllables of different
length were constantly repeated, getting a little higher in pitch towards the end :
• Catalogue of Birds, Vol. VIII., p. 325.
t In the Blean woods, near the village of Heme, formerly one of my favourite Entomological hunting
grounds.
Vol. I. 2 G
174 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
' twee-twee-hv-hvee-t.'' It was late in the morning when I found that it was nothing
in the world but our common little Tree-creeper. Now, I can count on my fingers
the number of times that I have heard the Creeper sing, and on those rare occa-
sions in England I have never heard the notes I have just described. But there
is no doubt that birds speak with a different accent in different localities."
There is not the least doubt that this is the case, for it is a fact well known
to bird-catchers, and it only shows the importance of a careful study of bird-song.
Without question Mr. Witchell, though some of his theories as to the origin of
bird-music seem somewhat strained and improbable, has done good work by his
researches in this direction.
The Tree-Creeper commences nidification towards the end of April ; usually
selecting as a site an opening behind the partly detached bark on the trunk of a
tree, less frequently, a crevice left by the breaking away of plaster in an out-
building, in a woodstack or heap of bricks, occasionally behind the eaves of a shed,
or even (so it is said) " in the foundation of the nest of a large bird of prey."
The nest itself is usually placed on a foundation of twigs, the outer walls being
formed of finer twigs intermixed with roots, and lined with fine root-fibre, moss,
grass, fine strips of bark, and sometimes a few feathers. The eggs which are
stated to number from six to nine in the first nest, and from three to five in the
second, are pure white, spotted and sometimes blotched with reddish-brown, and
with greyish -lavender underlying markings ; the spots frequently form a well-
defined zone round the larger end, sometimes they are few and dark, sometimes
scattered and paler.
A nest in my collection pronounced by Mr. Seebohm to be unquestionably
that of a Tree-Creeper, is a somewhat flimsy little open cup which was built in a.
cluster of twigs projecting from the trunk on an oak-tree at a height of about
eight feet from the ground ; it contains six well marked zoned eggs : another dis-
tinguished Ornithologist to whom I showed this nest, was of opinion that it was
that of a subspecies or phase of the Wood- Warbler (or a bird so exactly like that
species, that its singular type of nest alone ser^'ed to distinguish it). He told me
that he had seen others of the same character and from similar sites. This nest
has a good deal of spiders' silk in the lining.
In addition to insects, the Tree-Creeper (like all insectivorous birds) is very
fond of spiders ; it is said also to eat the seeds of the Scotch fir.
Although hardly a suitable subject for cage-life, I have seen several examples,
probably hand-reared, at bird-shows : in a large aviarj^ they would be more inter-
esting, though perhaps difficult to feed.
The Wall-Creeper. 175
Family— CER THIIDyE.
The Wall-Creeper.
Tichodroma inuraria, L,INN.
THE claim of this species to be called British is very slight : one example
having been shot in Norfolk and recorded in a letter to White, of Selborne,
in 1792; and a second in Lancashire, in 1872, mentioned by Mr. F. S. Mitchell.
A third specimen, obtained in Sussex, has recently been brought to light by Mr.
W. Ruskin Butterfield.
FAMILY MOTACILLID^.
THE Wagtails, or "Dish-washers" and "Whip-jacks" as the peasants call
them, are the most graceful of all our British birds ; they are characterized
by their long slender bills, legs, and tails ; by the absence of a bastard primary
in the wing ; the tarsus scaled in front, but not behind. The Pipits are nearly
allied to the above, but have somewhat shorter tails in proportion to their wings,
the feathers of the tail also forming a slight fork at the extremity.
The Motacillida pass through a complete moult in the autumn, like other
Passeres ; but if, as has been stated, they moult again in the spring, I can only
say that the species which I have kept in cage and aviary, must have swallowed
the feathers which they shed (which is improbable to say the least of it) : the
change into the breeding plumage is very gradual, the colour growing in the
feathers themselves. The supposed moulting of many birds in spring, seems to
be mysteriously dispensed with in favour of a change of colour, as soon as they
are brought under close observation. In some birds, however, a few feathers,
which represent a sort of winter coat, drop out during the change of plumage :
this is certainly the case with some, if not all of the African Weavers,* (whether
• I employ the term only for those birds called Weavers by aviculturists, not for all the members of the
family Ploceido'.
176 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
I'idui-ne or Ploceine) ; although most of the marvellous transformation in these
birds is produced by change of colour, and the growth of new overlapping flank
and tail plumes.
As aviary birds the Wagtails are among those most easy to keep and tame ;
and, provided that a little insect food can be given occasionally, no birds are less
trouble to their owners.
Family— MOTACILLID^.
The Pied Wagtail.
Motacilla lugubris, Temm.
CHlEFIyY confined to the western countries of Europe, this Wagtail occurs
also in N.W. Africa : in the autumn stragglers have been killed from Nice
to Sardinia, Sicily, and Malta. In Great Britain it is common and generally dis-
tributed, and excepting in the extreme north, whence it migrates southwards at
the approach of \vinter, it is a partial resident.
The colouring of this bird in breeding plumage is very pleasing ; the upper
parts intense silky black, but the forehead, sides of head and a more or less
prominent streak or patch (confluent with the latter) on the sides of the neck
snow-white ; wing-coverts and innermost secondaries margined with white ; two
outermost tail-feathers on each side mostly white ; quill feathers of wings blackish
brown ; chin, throat, and breast black, the latter confluent with the black on the
shoulder ; belly white ; the sides and flanks blackish ; bill and feet black ; iris
dark brown. The female is similar, but somewhat greyer above. Young birds
have the white areas tinted with yellow ; the upper parts grey, shading into
blackish on the upper tail-coverts ; under parts slightly paler, fading into whitish
on the under tail-coverts.
After the autumn moult the entire colouring is less pure, and the black of
the chin and throat are replaced by white.
0
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The Pied Wagtail. 177
Although usually seen in the neighbourhood of streams, dykes, pools, ponds,
and puddles, it is not uncommonly met with far from water in grazing-ground,
ploughed fields, especially when the furrows are newly formed ; whilst in the winter
it often enters gardens, and approaches close to the houses of the owners, if
rendered hungry by stress of weather. Old brickfields are a common resort of
this species, more especially where the emptied clay-deposits have filled up with
water, and their margins have become fringed with coarse vegetation : indeed all
Wagtails seem to delight in such a scene of desolation, for on one morning about
the end of May, 1883, I saw the Pied-, Blue-headed-, and Yellow Wagtails in a
large field of this description at Murston, near Sittingboume, Kent.
The springy see-sawing of the tail, common to all the Motacillidce, has probably
earned for them in Kent the title of " Whipjack," whilst the fondness of Wagtails
for bathing in shallow water explains their more wide-spread nickname of " Dish-
washer;" the latter name and that by which they are known in Sussex — Chizzic
(the origin of which is evident) apply more particularly to the Pied Wagtail than
to the others.
The song of this species is very pleasing ; not unlike that of a Swallow :
personally I prefer it to that of the Linnet, inasmuch as it is purer and less
chuckling in character and better sustained, though not so loud and much more
rarely heard. In flight, as on the ground, the actions of this and all Wagtails
are graceful ; for on the wing they move in a series of wide undulations or dips,
but on their slender nimble legs they walk with head erect but slightly bobbing
forward at each step ; or they run, with head lowered and craned forward : their
power of turning in the air is astounding ; few insects, however eccentric their
flight, can hope to escape them. If a Wagtail is on the ground and it sees an
insect flying towards it, instead of at once starting madly forward to meet its
prey, it excitedly watches all the insect's movements, and suddenly (when the
latter is almost overhead) the agile bird rises with a rapid spiral movement which
looks almost like a somersault, the snap of its mandibles is heard and all is over.
In sunny weather one may frequently see the Pied Wagtail running along the
ridge of a roof, a stone coping, or an old wall, catching the flies as they start up
at its approach, and frequently uttering its cheerful little cry " chizzic,''' as each
new victim is perceived : whether this is its call-note or the shrill monosyllabic
short whistle (into which the bird can throw so much expression that it almost
seems to speak) I do not know for certain, but I am inclined, from long study of
this species in captivity, to believe that "chizzic" is merely a cry of excitement.
The Pied Wagtail usually builds its nest in hollows in banks, sides of deserted
chalk-pits, Sand-Martins' holes, gaps in brickwork under rustic bridges, in a hole
178 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs
in a wall just above water, or a crevice in a rock ; but it sometimes places it in
gnarled roots of trees, in faggot-stacks, in ivy on the top of a low wall, and I
once took one formed in a deserted Blackbird's nest built in ivy on the top of the
trunk of a branchless oak. Nidification lasts from April to June, but most nests
may be found towards the end of May : indeed my experience would incline me
to regard none of the Wagtails as early breeders, though forward individuals may
be ready to nest in April.
The nest is constructed of dry bents, rootlets, and a little moss, and is thickly
lined with wool, or feathers and hair : it is somewhat large and shallow in character,
frequently with one side higher than the other, if it be possible for a circular
rim to have sides. The eggs vary in number from four to six, the latter being
a frequent clutch ; in colouring they are tolerably uniform, differing chiefly in the
paler or darker ground tint (though it is always light) and more or less heavy
speckling at the larger end ; the ground colour is either a greenish-white or pale
greenish-grey, the speckling is grey or smoky brown (a few of the dots often
approaching black) some of the markings being more prominent than others. The
House-Sparrow sometimes lays a similar egg, only generally of a more elongated
shape.
The Pied Wagtail is largely insectivorous ; but, in addition to insects, their
larvae, spiders, centipedes, and (according to the late Mr. Booth) the ova of a small
crab, I believe that in the winter seeds are swallowed by it. At any rate this is
certainly the case in an aviary, though not often.
In September, 1888, I purchased my iirst captive Pied Wagtail from a bird-
catcher. It was decidedly a domineering bird, and was long before it became
tame, knocking out all its tail-feathers in the first few months of its confinement
in a large aviary, nor did it recover them until the following July : it lived
about eighteen months, after it had starved my hen Grey Wagtail to death by
incessantly driving it from the soft food.
In June or July, 1892, a nest of six of these birds was shown to me in a field
a short distance from my house ; the site for the nest was rather curious : a
number of boards had been piled up near a fence by the builder who owned the
ground, and when he wished to utilise them he discovered the nest built below
one which had been tilted up. I examined the nest and found that the young
were just ready to take, but hesitated to secure them, as my holiday was almost at
an end, and the duty of feeding would devolve upon my wife. I therefore crossed
the field and with a field-glass watched the parents arriving incessantly with food
for about an hour : they appeared to have an unusual amount of white on the neck,
and I took them at first for White Wagtails, but the young were certainly Pied.
The Pied Wagtail. 179
My wife having undertaken the duty of feeding during the day, I sent my
man for the nest in the evening, but it was empty, and a cat was seen slinking
away. Next morning, however, one young one shivering with cold and wheezing
badly, was discovered behind a board: under careful treatment it soon recovered,
and was reared without trouble upon crushed tea-biscuit, preserved yolk of egg,
ants' cocoons, and Abrahams' food for Insectivorous birds, mixed together and
moistened. We have found this little Wagtail a very interesting pet : in the
summer we let him fly about the dining-room, where he delights in playing the
game of hide-and-seek, keeping quite still until discovered, when he excitedly
shouts chizzic, chizzic, and runs out from his retreat : he is absolutely tame, lighting
with us after the manner of a Canary. When tired of flying about he always
returns to his cage of his own accord and jumps up to his perch.
As a rule, and especially during the winter months, when we are afraid to let
" Chizzic " out, on account of fires, his cage is kept in my conservatory ; and, if
my wife goes out there without stopping to have a fight, he shouts to her in a
most reproving tone : his excitement when she pokes her finger through the bars
is ludicrous, he screams with excitement and (although it is difficult to imagine
how a bird-face can be made to express glee) he undoubtedly appears to laugh
much as one sees a dog do when playing. He is always ready to fight me, but
never shows the same madcap hilarity as with my wife. On several occasions
when my servant has played with him, he has half spread his wings, arched his
back, depressed his tail, and sung the true wild song to her : sometimes in the
spring he sings from his perch, but not often.*
All insectivorous birds make more or less interesting pets when hand-reared ;
but none are so satisfactory as the Wagtails (doubtless the other species would be
quite as pleasing as the Pied) ; even when caught wild, most examples of Motacilla
soon become tame if kindly treated : they are easy to feed, living for years upon
crumbled household bread, yolk of egg and ants' cocoons, moistened (either by the
addition of a little water or mashed potato) and a few insects, their larvae, or
spiders from time to time. But, unless hand-reared neither the Pied-, nor any
other Wagtail, should be kept in a cage ; and certainly, when possible, the liberty
of a room should be allowed for a short time each day to a caged specimen ; even
then, at its autumn moult the pet cage-bird fails to cast the scales on the tarsi,
which yearly pile up on the front of its feet and much disfigure it.
* Since I penned the above account, little "Chizzic" has passed awa}-: even to the last he tried to bear
lip, making an effort to play at fighting when so weak that he staggered wildly in his walk.
i8o British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Family— MOTACILLID^.
The White Wagtail.
Motacilla alba, LiNN.
DISTRIBUTED over the whole of Europe and breeding as far north as land
extends : it is also believed to breed in Egypt, and it certainly does so in
the Highlands of Palestine, Asia Minor and Persia, to which countries it is also
a winter visitor. In the autumn the European birds travel southwards, wintering
in Southern Evirope, North Africa, southward to Senegal and eastward to Zanzibar.
It is also said sometimes to visit the Canaries.
Mr. Bond first recognised this as a British bird in 1841, since when it has
occurred more or less commonly in Cornwall, Devonshire, the Isle of Wight, Kent,
Middlesex, Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire, Suffolk, Norfolk, Lincolnshire,
Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire, Lancashire, Cumberland, and Northumberland. In
Scotland it has been seen as far north as Inverness and even in Shetland ; it has
also occurred on the island of Lewis after rough weather. From Ireland only one
authenticated specimen is recorded.
The White Wagtail in general appearance, habits, and nidification, nearly
resembles the Pied species, but differs in the grey colouring of its back and lesser
wing-coverts ; the white on the cheeks and sides of neck extended, so as completely
to disunite the black of the crown and nape from that of the throat and breast ;
the tail also is said to be longer, but this is certainly a variable character. The
female shows no black on the nape and back, as in the Pied Wagtail.
It is evident that the White Wagtail is not aware of the importance of the
above distinctions, inasmuch as there are certainly two instances known of its
pairing with the Pied species in a wild state, one of these being represented by
the nest exhibited with old birds and young at the Natural History Museum,
obtained in Norfolk by Lord Walsingham.
Mr. Frohawk and I saw a fine example of this species in Kent, but we failed
to secure the specimen : it would have been very useful for the present work.
Several instances are on record of the " Water Wagtail " (which might mean
either the Pied or the White Wagtail) making its nest under a railway truck,
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The Grey Wagtail. iSi
between the axle-box and axle-guard. In one such instance (described in the
"Zoologist" for January, 1893, p. 30) the nest was discovered in November with
" two eggs, one quite warm, having been recently laid." It does not however
follow that, because a bird continues to roost on a nest containing unhatched eggs,
the latter are necessarily recently deposited. I have known many birds in captivity
to retire to their old nests when they have felt unwell, or in cold weather, and it
is quite likely that they also do the same when at liberty.
Family— MO TA CILLID^.
The Grey Wagtail.
Motacilla melanope, Pall.
HOWARD SAUNDERS gives the following as the distribution of this species
outside Britain : — " On the Continent the Grey Wagtail barely reaches the
extreme south of Sweden, and is very rare in Northern Germany, while in Russia
it is hardly found beyond the latitude of Moscow ; but in the mountainous and
even rolling ground of the central and southern parts of Europe it is fairly
common ; breeding as far south as the basin of the Mediterranean, where it is a
resident, as it is also in the Canaries, Madeira, and the Azores. Eastward, it is
found in summer across Asia, south of about 67° N. lat., to Persia, Turkestan, the
Himalayas, Northern China, and Japan ; wintering in India, Burma, the Indo-
Malayan Islands, Palestine, and Northern Africa."
In Great Britain the Grey Wagtail is resident, breeding chiefly in the
mountainous districts, though occasionally in the plains : it is somewhat local in
England, Wales, and Ireland, being more frequently seen in the south of England
during the winter than the summer months.
In breeding plumage the male of this exceedingly graceful bird is chiefly
slaty-grey above, the head slightly darker ; but the rump and upper tail-coverts
Vol. I. 2 H .
i82 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
are greenish-yellow ; the wing coverts brownish-black with pale margins ; flights
blackish-brown ; the secondaries margined with bufhsh- white ; the three outermost
tail feathers white ; the second and third pairs with a great part of the outer web
brownish-black ; the six central feathers brownish-black edged with greenish-yellow ;
a narrow arched white superciliary stripe ; a second white stripe from the base of
the lower mandible to the neck, bordering a black gorget which covers the throat
and breast ; remainder of under surface bright sulphur-yellow ; bill black ; feet
brown ; iris dark brown. The female is slightly smaller than the male, has a
shorter tail, duller colouring, and little or no black on the throat. After the
autumn moult the black disappears entirely, the throat becoming white and the
breast tinted with sandy-buif. Birds of the year are like adults in winter plumage,
excepting that they are browner above, with the superciliary stripe and under
surface washed with buff".
The Grey Wagtail is especially fond of the vicinity of water, haunting
mountain streams, rushing rivers, and tumbling torrents : such localities as the
Dipper delights in, form the chosen home of this most elegant of all the Motacillida.
But it is not only seen in the wilder regions, even during the breeding season ;
for a few pairs remain to bring up a family even in the most level and prosaic
p^rts of the southern counties ; and, in the autumn and winter months, it not
uncommonly becomes a prize of the birdcatchers of Kent and Surrey, who by no
means regard it as any great capture, but willingly part with it at prices varying
from ninepence to eighteen pence according to the purchaser.
Barly in the present year (1896) our postman informed me that a foreign
bird had flown into his house, and asked if I had lost one. I replied in the
negative and asked for information as to its form, colouring, etc. Finally he
fetched it to show me, and I at once recognised it as a male Grey Wagtail just
commencing its change of plumage : the man had been trying to feed it on
Canary-seed, and when he discovered that it would need special soft food and
insects, he willingly gave it to me.
The Grey Wagtail, in its actions, flight, song, and expressive notes, much
resembles the other forms ; but it is more solitary than either the Pied or Yellow
Wagtails ; each pair appearing to occupy an area apart from others of its own
species ; whereas one may see three or four pairs of either the Pied or Yellow
Wagtails within the limits of a comparatively small area during the breeding-
season. In the autumn only does the Grey Wagtail appear to be more sociable,
because the young usually accompany their parents until winter is well advanced.
The Grey Wagtail is double-brooded, usually commencing its first nest in
April, Seebohm says " towards the end of April or early in May," Howard Saunders
The Grey Wagtail. 183
says " in the latter half of April in England, but earlier in the south of Europe,"
whilst an observant Scot, John Craig, in a letter to the "Feathered World" (May
8th, 1896), insists upon it that in North Ayrshire it " begins to lay in the first
week of April " ! Speaking of it in the Parnassus, Seebohm observes " I obtained
several nests of fresh-laid eggs in the middle and end of May ; but these appeared
to be second broods, as I shot several young birds of the year."
As a rule this bird selects a rocky bank, a hole in the wall of an old water-
mill, or a crevice in a bank, under an overhanging ledge and well concealed by
rank herbage ; but there is no rule without exceptions, for Seebohm says he once
" saw one built in the fork of three stems of an alder, close to the ground, almost
overlapping the river " ; whilst I took a nest in Kent (from which we flushed the
female bird) built in a furrow of a ploughed field near the creek at Kemsley, close
to Sheppey.* This nest is constructed of root fibre, interwoven with coarse dry
grass, cow-, and horse-hair ; the lining being very thick, and formed of black
horse-hair, white cow-hair, and wool. The usual materials, according to Seebohm,
are fine roots, with a few stalks of dry grass in the outer and coarser portions,
and a lining of cow-hair, the preference being given to white ; Howard Saunders
adds moss to the outer walls, and does not specify the nature or colour of the
hair-lining ; Lord Lilford says that it " much resembles that of the Pied Wagtail,
but is considerably smaller": other authorities mention feathers as forming part
of the lining, but Wagtails are not much addicted to the use of such material.
The eggs, according to several authorities, are smaller than those of the
Yellow Wagtail ; although the Grey Wagtail is by far the larger bird : in my nest,
however, the eggs were fully as large as the largest eggs of the Pied Wagtail,
and in my opinion Lord Lilford's description is most likely to be accurate ; at any
rate it exactly accords with my solitary experience : — " The eggs are usually five
in niimber, of a creamy white, closely blotched or clouded with pale yellowish
brown, and may be distinguished from those of the commoner Yellow Wagtail
(Motacilla raiij by their larger size and the absence of the hair-like dark streaks
which in most cases are found on the eggs of the latter bird." Unless a man
not only takes the nest himself, but actually sees the parent bird leave it, the
nest alone is not sufficient evidence on which to identify the eggs of one of these
yellow species of Wagtail ; yet there is no doubt that, in many cases, their iden-
tification rests upon no better basis than the assertions of rustics, who almost
invariably confound the Grey Wagtail with the Yellow.
The food of the Grey Wagtail consists largely of insects, their larvae, centi-
* This nest was first observed by the plough-boy whilst guiding his horses, and knowing that I was
collecting nests and eggs he carefully avoided it, so that it lay on the side of the furrow, a clod of earth
partly protecting it.
i84 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
pedes, spiders, and small niolliisca ; but in winter the last-mentioned, small worms,
and a few seeds of weeds are eaten.
My first experience of this charming bird in captivity, was in September,
1888, when a friend netted two females and gave them to me; I turned them, at
first, into a large cage, but one of them refused to eat, and died the following
day : the other bird I transferred to a large aviary, where, in three days, it became
so tame that it not only took mealworms from my fingers, but ran between my
feet as I stood in the aviary ; moreover within a year it followed me about ; and
whenever I passed by the aviary, it flew up to the wire and called me. Unhappily
I turned in a cock Pied Wagtail with it, and the latter bird so persecuted the
poor thing (invariably chasing it away from the food pan when it attempted to
eat) that, early in December, 1889, it died of starvation.
Several years ago (1892) Mr. Staines, of Penge, formerly a rather successful
exhibitor of Wagtails, gave me a male of this species which had been for some
time in his possession ; I turned it out into a cool aviary, where it came into
superb plumage, and soon became very tame ; though less so than my first (female)
example : this and a second male, previously referred to, were still flourishing when
I wrote this article, but Mr. Staines' bird has since died (August 1896).
Family— MOTA CILLID^.
The Blue-Headed Wagtail.
Motacilla flava, LiNN.
SEEBOHM gives the following as the geographical distribution of this species :
" extending from the British Islands across Europe and Asia at least as far
as the Rocky Mountains of America. It is common across the Channel, and is
found in Scandinavia south of lat. 60°, which appears also to be the northern limit
of its range in Russia. In Western Europe it is found down to Gibraltar, and
crosses the Straits into Tangiers ; but in Eastern Europe it does not breed so far
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The Blue-Headed Wagtail. 185
south. It passes through South Russia, Greece, and North-east Africa on migra-
tion, and winters in South Africa, whence it has been received from Damara Land,
Natal, and the Transvaal. In Asia it is said to have about the same range to the
north, but in Alaska it breeds up to lat. 64°. It breeds throughout South Siberia,
Mongolia, and North China, wintering in India and Burma. In Turkestan it is
only known on migration. It is doubtful whether it has occurred in Persia, but it
breeds in the Caucasus."
In the British Islands the Blue-headed Wagtail has chiefly occurred in the
southern, south-western, and eastern counties during the breeding-season, nests
having been recorded from Kent and Durham ; it has occurred a few times in
Scotland and Ireland, and has been seen in Shetland in the autumn.
The adult male in breeding plumage has the forehead, crown, and nape bluish-
grey ; back yellowish-olive, browner on the upper tail-coverts ; wing-coverts dark
brown, tipped with yellowish-white ; flights dark brown ; secondaries with yellowish-
white margins ; tail feathers, excepting the two outer pairs, blackish-brown ; the
outer ones white, their inner webs edged with black ; lores and ear-coverts deep
slate-grey ; a white superciliary streak, and a second white streak below the lores ;
chin white ; remainder of under surface bright canary yellow ; bill and feet black ;
iris hazel. The female is duller in colouring, and the head is more olivaceous.
Young birds have the breast spotted with brown, and otherwise closely resemble
the female. The white eye-stripe is always present at all ages in both sexes.
I met with this species in life about the end of May, or beginning of June,
1883, when I saw it in company with the Yellow Wagtail in an old deserted
brickfield at Murston, near Sittingbourne ; it was running along the margins of
the reedy pools (produced by the removal of the brick- earth and the subsequent
winter rains), flying up from time to time with a shrill cry which resembled that
of its Yellow congener, a sort of scizzur to my ear, though it has usually been
rendered chit-up by writers on British birds.
Two years later Mr. William Drake of Kemsley, near Sheppey, sent me a
nest found by one of his boys among the long wiry grass on the saltings near
the creek, informing me that it was the nest of a Yellow Wagtail, as the boy had
seen the birds, which he described as having a " black head with white ring,"
evidently referring to the superciliary and subloral white streaks, the head probably
appearing, at a short distance, to be blackish in contrast with the yellowish colouring
of the back : the eggs (six in number) are for the most part almost indistinguish-
able from those of the common Yellow Wagtail, but one or two are distinctly
mottled, and correspond exactly with authentic eggs of the Blue-headed species in
my possession.
i86 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
In his " Birds of Norfolk " Stevenson mentions the occurrence of this species
at Sherringham, Yarmouth, and the Heigham river : he also records the fact of its
having been shot on more than one occasion at Lowestoft (Suffolk) and at Stoke
Nayland. Although only a visitor to our islands on migration, this species is
probably a tolerably regular one ; moreover, the fact that it undoubtedly breeds
with us, fully entitles it to be regarded as a British species. Herr Gatke observes :
" As one might expect, it also visits Heligoland in very large numbers during
both migration periods — though naturally its numbers are incomparably larger in
autumn than in spring ; but even during the latter season, if the weather is toler-
ably favourable, flocks of hundreds may be seen covering the sheep pastures."
W. Warde Fowler, in his "Summer Studies of Birds and Books" says: — "A
few of these seem to come to us every year ; and just as it is worth while always
to look at Pied Wagtails to make sure that they are not White Wagtails, so it is
as well to glance at all yellow birds we see, in case we should some day meet
with one that has a distinctly bluish head, and a white stripe over the eye instead
of a yellow one. A beginner, indeed, may easily confuse the female of the common
species for the rarity he is looking out for ; and he should never be satisfied until
he has watched his bird at a very short distance, and if possible with a good field-
glass.* Though Oxford is a favourite haunt of Yellow Wagtails, I have in the
course of many years detected but two or three of the rarer species."
Charles Dixon says that he met with the Blue-headed Wagtail in Algeria " in
flocks in the oases, apparently on migration, in May." (Birds of Algeria, p. 65).
Occurring there so late in the year, one would almost expect that a few pairs
would breed there, as they are known to do in North-eastern Africa (cf. Seebohm,
Hist. British Birds, Vol. II., p. 209.)
Nidification takes place with this species between the middle of May and the
first week of June ; the nest being placed on the ground amongst coarse herbage,
frequently under a tuft of grass in meadows or cornfields, sometimes in the bank
of a dry ditch : it is somewhat loosely constructed of fine rootlets, grass, straws,
and bents, sometimes with an admixture of moss ; and is lined with horse-hair,
wool, or fine bents ; occasionally with wool and a few downy feathers. The eggs
number from four to six, and are either pale yellowish brown, with a fine black
streak on the larger end, or yellowish white, mottled and clouded with pale brown,
both types with intermediate grades sometimes occurring in the same clutch.
The food of this Wagtail consists of insects and their larvae, spiders, centipedes,
* Excepting when collecting nests and eggs in dense woods, where it was often necessary- to force my waj-
through bramble and hawthorn, I usually carried a powerful little glass in my pocket : this enabled me, not
only to recognise species, but to watch the birds to their nests. — A. G. B.
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The Yellow Wagtail. 187
and small freshwater mollusca : but in confinement it would doubtless feed on the
usual soft food, like all its congeners, and would make a most desirable and
interesting addition to an aviary.
Family— MO TA CILLID^.
The Yellow Wagtail.
Motacilla rait, BONAP.
ACCORDING to Seebohm, this species " breeds in the north of France, passes
through the south of France, Spain, and Portugal on migration, and occa-
sionally strays into North-west Italy, in all of which districts it is possible that a
few remain to breed. In Africa it has been found in winter as far south as the
Transvaal on the east coast, and has occurred in Gambia, the Gold Coast, and the
Gaboon on the west. An isolated colony appears to exist in South-east Russia
and West Turkestan."
To Great Britain the Yellow Wagtail is a summer migrant, being generally
distributed in England, excepting in Cornwall and Devon, where it is, however,
seen on migration. In Scotland it is far more local, being most common in the
southern counties, nevertheless it has perhaps been met with in Sutherlandshire,
and is believed to breed in Inverness and Aberdeen ; its occurrence in Orkney
and the Shetlands has been reported, but the statements need verification. In
Ireland it is not only very local but rare, though it is known to breed near Dublin
and at Lough Neagh.
The male in breeding plumage has the upper parts for the most part of a
bright yellowish- green colour, forehead more yellow, and upper tail-coverts slightly
more olive : wing-coverts and flights smoky-brown, tipped and edged with pale
bufi"; tail blackish, the two outer feathers on each side white with black edging
to the inner webs ; a sulphur-yellow streak over the eye and ear-coverts ; the latter
i88 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
and the lores yellowish-olive ; under parts bright canary yellow ; bill and feet
black ; iris hazel. The female is browner above and paler below, and the super-
ciliary stripe is yellowish-white. After the autnmn moult both sexes become duller
and less yellow. Birds of the year are slightly browner than the female on the
upper parts ; the throat pale yellowish-buff, becoming browner on the breast ;
abdomen pale yellow ; the sides of the neck and breast more or less streaked or
spotted with brown.
This species reaches our shores early in March, arriving in Scotland about
the beginning of April : the return migration taking place in September and
October.
The fondness of this Wagtail and its Blue-headed relative for the pastures in
which cattle are grazing is well-known, the attraction being the flies which collect
round and torment these animals. They also follow the plough and feed upon
the wireworms and other beetle-larvae which are turned up in the furrows ; also in
the fields, in which spring sowing is being carried on, they doubtless find many
small worms and spiders. Like all the Wagtails they are fond of bathing, and
consequently are frequently met with near streams and dykes ; or in deserted
brickfields, where the winter rains have formed pools, surrounded by coarse grass
and nettles.
W. Warde Fowler, in his " Summer Studies," p.p. 109-10 has the following
interesting account of a large assemblage of this pretty species : — " These most
charming birds come to Oxford about the middle of April. They come up the
river, and gather in great numbers on that vast meadow above the city known as
Port Meadow ; which almost deserves a chapter to itself, so interesting is its
history, so rich its treasures of birds and plants, and so various its aspect in flood
and frost, under sunshine and shower. Here, on the 26th of April, 1887, I saw
a more wonderful gathering of Yellow Wagtails than I have ever seen since, or
am ever likely to see again. Mr. Arthur Macpherson had come into my rooms
the evening before, to tell me that he had seen some Dunlins on the bank of the
Isis, where, it boiinds this great meadow to the west. As these birds of the sea-
shore had never before been reported to me, I started the next afternoon, hindered
and baffled by a strong and bitter wind which soon turned to pelting rain, and by
a toothache which raged in sympathy with the elements ; but I was rewarded for
my pains. I found the Dunlins ; but I found also what was far more wonderful
and beautiful — the whole length of the river's bank, on the meadow side of it,
occupied by countless Yellow Wagtails. As I walked along they got up literally
from under m}' feet ; for they were sheltering just beneath the meadow's lip, and
I came upon them quite unawares. When a turn in the bank gave me a view
The Yellow Wagtail. 189
ahead, I could see the turf spotted all over with the brilliant yellow of their
breasts ; for I was walking with the wind, and they, of course, were facing it, to
avoid having their plumage uncomfortably handled by the gusts.
They were not afraid of me, and settled down again directly I had passed on,
so that my progress was like that of a haymaking machine, which just lifts the
hay as it passes, and then lets it settle down again after dallying a moment with
the breeze. These birds had clearly only just arrived after their long journey from
Africa, and I think they must have come together and unpaired ; the greater
number of them were males. Their numbers diminished regularly day by day,
and at the same time I began to see pairs in their usual places in the neighbour-
hood evidently preparing to nest. In a few days they were nearly all distributed
over the country-side."
The site chosen for the nest is frequently a furrow or depression in the earth
in a pasture or cornfield, partly concealed by coarse herbage or a dislodged grassy
clod, sometimes in the side of a deep pit partly filled with water and overgrown
with rank grass and nettles, or in a sloping bank covered with weeds and wild
flowers, or again among the long coarse grass at the foot of a wall. It is by no
means an easy nest to find, for it never seems to be exposed like that of the Pied
Wagtail, and therefore is more often discovered by accident than by design : that
is to say, when carefully searching every foot of ground with a view to securing
a possible nest of Skylark or Tree-Pipit, one may stumble upon that of the Yellow
Wagtail. The nest is constructed of coarse dry grasses and rootlets, lined with
finer rootlets, fine bents, black and white hair, or sometimes with green moss,
rabbits' down, or sheep's wool : feathers are said to be occasionally used.* The
eggs number from five to six, and usually closely resemble those of the Sedge-
Warbler, excepting that they are larger ; the paler varieties are greyish-white more
or less densely mottled with pale clay-colour ; but more often this mottling spreads
uniformly over the whole surface, rendering the shell uniformly pale stone-brown,
(like some eggs of the Partridge) there are usually one or two short black hair-
lines at the larger end.
The call-note is a soft monosyllabic whistle, and the note of excitement a
shrill scizzur : the song, which is rarely heard, somewhat resembles that of the
Swallow.
My first experience of this species in confinement was a short one. In the
winter of 1889-90, a birdcatcher brought me a specimen which he had carried
about in a cage with linnets and other birds all day ; no water being supplied and
only seed being available for food : the poor thing was so exhausted that it died
* I have not, however, met with this material in the lining. — A. G. B.
Vol. I. 2 1
igo British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
the following morning. My second bird was given to me in 1894, by Mr. Staines,
of Penge, who had already had it in a room for some time. I turned it out into
a cool aviary with ni}^ Grey Wagtail, where it spent the winter without mishap,
though the temperature on one or two occasions registered twelve degrees of frost :
in the spring it came into grand colour, and then began to persecute its Grey
relative, so that eventually I had to place it in a large flight-cage : this I suppose
it resented, for (shortly after I had acquired what I then supposed to be a hen)
in the autumn of 1895 it died. My third bird I purchased from a bird-catcher,
and turned it out at once into the aviary with the Grey Wagtail, and insectivorous
bird though it is, it no sooner saw the latter eating the soft food than it followed
the good example and saved me all anxiety. In the spring of 1896, I was aston-
ished and pleased to see this bird gradually develop the brightest male plumage
which I have ever noticed in the Yellow Wagtail : indeed a reputed Canary-breeder
who came to see my birds, after looking at the brilliant tropical colouring of
Weavers and Cardinals with lack-lustre eye, suddenly became eloquent as he came
in sight of my Yellow Wagtail, exclaiming excitedly — " O ! I should like to have
that Canary ! " He cannot have known much about his favourites ; perhaps he
mistook the Wagtail for an extra fine Scotch-fancy bird.
In a wild state the Yellow Wagtail feeds upon insects and their larvae, spiders,
centipedes, and small worms : in confinement it requires a few insects, cockroaches
answering the purpose as well as anything ; but as staple diet, the same food as
that given to all insectivorous birds answers admirably : it usually commences on
the yolk of egg and ants' cocoons, onlj^ eating the bread and potato, as a last
resource, when other ingredients fail.
Mr. Septimus Perkins, in "The Avicultural Magazine," Vol. I., p. 126,
published some interesting notes on this species : — " Some few years ago, while
living in the Midlands, I possessed a fair-sized in-door aviary, in which I kept
a good many migratory British birds. Here I kept the Yellow Wagtail along
with the smallest and most delicate Warblers, and I never found that he
did them the slightest injury, although he was sometimes just a little tyrannical.
But two male Wagtails, whether of the same or different species, will quarrel
and fight.
This bird is a somewhat large eater, and takes very kindly to hard-boiled
egg, though he likes Abrahams' Preserved Egg even better, because that is all
yolk. He shoiild have as much egg as he will eat, and as man}' soaked ants' eggs
as he will eat. Also three or four mealworms a day, and as many flies and small
caterpillars as you can take the trouble to catch.
The Yellow Wagtail is a tender bird, but I do not consider him nearly so
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The Tree-Pipit. 191
delicate as the Warblers, he eats more heartily of artificial food than they do, and
consequently does not require so many mealworms."
Mr. Perkins then goes on to recommend that soaked ants' eggs should form
the staple article of diet ; also that the egg should be given in a separate vessel,
not mixed with bread-crumbs, which he considers indigestible and not nourishing
for insectivorous birds. I miist confess that my experience does not support this
view ; for not onl}^ do many insectivorous birds live largely, during the autumn
and winter months, upon seed and grain ; but they become sleek and fat upon
this diet. Soaked ants' eggs soon become sour, especially in hot weather ; and
I find that when dry or only slightly damped, birds eat them just as readily. The
opinion of Mr. Abrahams, based upon the experience of a lifetime, is also weighty ;
and he recommends that his food for insectivorous birds should be mixed with
double the quantity of bread-crumbs.
In my opinion none of the Wagtails are delicate ; but if the birds are overfed,
they are far more liable to disease, than when fed moderately. It must always be
borne in mind, that birds in cage or aviary do not have to seek their food ; there-
fore their tendency is to eat more than is good for them.
Family— MOTA CILLID^.
The Tree-Pipit.
Anthus trivialis, LiNN.
THIS species breeds in Northern and Central Europe from Tromso in Norway
south-westwards to the British Isles, the Pyrenees, and the mountains of
northero Italy, and south-eastwards as far as the Crimea, to the north-east from
the valley of the Petchora, the Ural Mountains, and the valle}^ of the Yenesay in
19* British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Siberia, also through Turkestan to the Altai Mountains. South of the Pyrenees
and Northern Italy the Tree-Pipit is met with on migration and in winter, as also
in Morocco and Algeria in N.W. Africa, eastward to Bgypt, Nubia, and Ab3'ssinia.
It has even been said to occur as far to the south as Caifraria.
In Great Britain this bird only occurs as a summer visitor, being pretty
generally distributed and common in Bngland, with the exception of western
Cornwall and Wales, where it is scarce ; in Scotland it is rarer and far more local,
with the exception of the neighbourhood of Glasgow where it is abundant. It has
not been met with in Ireland, according to Howard Saunders ; but Mr. C. W.
Benson (in the "Zoologist" for 1878, p. 348) mentions the occurrence of a pair in
Dublin, and Mr. H. C. Hart states that he found a nest thirteen years previousl}^
in the same county.*
The upper surface of this species in breeding plumage is clear sandy brown,
with dark centres to the feathers, less prominent on the rump ; wings dark brown,
the coverts and secondaries with paler margins ; tail for the most part dark brown,
but the outermost feathers white, with a brown stripe on the inner web, and the
next feather on each side broadly tipped with white ; a buff superciliary stripe ;
chin and belly whitish, remainder of under surface buff; a dark streak from the
base of the bill to the sides of the neck, where there are other dark brown streaks
and spots, as also at the sides of the breast and flanks : bill brown, the base of
lower mandible paler ; feet flesh-colour ; iris hazel. The female is slightly smaller,
and has less defined breast-spots than the male. After the autumn moult the buff
of the under surface is more pronounced. Birds of the year are more spotted on
the breast and flanks, but these markings are smaller than in adult birds.
The shorter and more covered hind claw, larger size, somewhat longer tail,
warmer colouring, and paler legs, distinguish this bird from the Meadow-Pipit.
This species usually makes its appearance in England early in April, though
sometimes not before the third week, and in the south of Scotland early in May :
its favourite haunts are pastures on the outskirts of plantations, shrubberies inter-
spersed with large trees, or woods ; also large gardens, parks, tall hedgerows, but
more, especially uneven hedges, with here and there a tall tree : here one can best
observe its curious caricature of the Skylark's upward flight, rising perpendicularly
for a short distance and thence, with expanded wings and tail, dropping spirally,
singing the while.
In his " Evolution of Bird-song," p. 118, Mr. Charles A. Witchell thus renders
the song of the Tree- Pipit : — " Chee chee chee chee eecliaw eechaw whee whee whec whee
wkee whee : or eechaw eechaw chee chee chee chee judge judge judge judge whee whee whee
* cf. Seebohm's British Birds, Vol. II., p. 219.
The Tree-Pipit. 193
wJiee, and so on." On p. 119 also, he mentions that the final notes of its early
spring song and those of the Skylark are alike, and " consist of a somewhat plain-
tive, prolonged, and repeated whistle, descending in pitch during its utterance."
Mr. Witchell has not only studied the songs of our birds very carefully for some
time past, but has had a musical education, which has specially fitted him for his
task ; therefore I consider it far better to quote his version of a song, written
down whilst the bird was singing, than to trust my own memory of it.*
As its name implies, this species frequently perches on trees, but it always
nests upon the ground, frequently in the side of a sloping bank on the margin of
a wood or shaw, or near the foot of a hedge by the roadside ; sometimes far away
in the centre of a grass meadow, or cornfield ; sometimes on a railway bank :
usually the nest is tolerably well concealed, but one which I took from a roadside
bank not far from a large wood, was so conspicuously situated that, although it
only contained three eggs, I did not dare to leave it until the clutch was complete ;
but paying a second visit to the same road a few days later I found a fourth &^^
deposited in the cavity whence I had removed the nest.
The nest itself is formed of dried grass and bents mixed with moss, the
materials somewhat finer towards the inside ; and lined with a few black horsehairs,
as in some nests of the Greater Whitethroat : but occasionally a few rootlets are
introduced into the walls, and sometimes the entire structure is made of dry
grasses ; though all the nests which I have found have been fairly typical. The
eggs vary from four to six in number, five being the more frequent clutch : in
colouring they differ individually as much as any eggs that are laid, and may
roughly be distinguished as — i. Greenish- white, spotted and heavily blotched at
the larger end with blackish-brown and lavender; 2. Buff- whitish, densely mottled
and spotted all over with olive-brown ; 3. Pinky-buff, densely mottled and spotted
all over with deep terra-cotta, with one or two black hair-lines or Bunting-marks
at the larger end ; 4. Ruddy-brown inclining to chocolate, with scarcely perceptible
darker reticulations, and black Bunting-marks at the larger end : every graduation
may be found between these four types; but, in my experience the intergrades
between the olive and ruddy mottled types are the commonest.
As nests may occasionally be met with from May to August, it is very probable
that two broods are sometimes reared ; but it is believed that this is by no means
the rule ; because the young, after leaving the nest, remain for a considerable
time in their parents' company.
The action of this and all the Pipits is very like that of the Wagtails, as they
* The call-note is said to resemble that of the Greenfinch, and the alami-note to be a sharp tick, tick,
frequently repeated.
Vol. I. 2 K
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194 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
run upon the earth, their tails spring up and down in the same manner; but in
their food they more nearly approach the Larks inasmuch as they not only eat
insects and their larvse, spiders, centipedes, and small worms, but also a good deal
of seed, more especially of cereals : in aviaries they often husk and swallow their
share of canary-seed. Whether the Tree-Pipit is as combative in confinement as
his relative the Titlark I do not know, because I have had no personal experience
of the present species as an aviary pet; but, from what I know of the Meadow
Pipit, I should recommend that only one example be admitted into a mixed aviary,
otherwise I suspect that there would be war to the death.
Lord Lilford, speaking of this bird in Northamptonshire, says : — " It arrives
with us generally in the second or third week of April, and the male bird soon
makes his presence known by his loud song, which has some resemblance to both
that of the Canary and the Skylark; he also attracts attention by his common
habit of soaring from a tree to a moderate height, and descending slowly, singing
his best, with tail outspread and legs hanging, to the perch from which he started,
or another close by it, without coming to the ground : this habit has, in some
places, gained him the name of " Woodlark " ; but I need hardly say that the true
Wood-lark fAlauda arborea) is a very distinct bird, which differs from the present
species in many essential particulars, and whose song is in every way far superior
to that of the Tree-Pipit."
This note of Lord Lilford's is of considerable interest, as I am satisfied that,
in many parts of England, the Tree- Pipit is confounded with the Woodlark ; though
more particularly by people born and bred in the country ; the most difiicult of all
to convince of their errors.
Gatke says that the Tree-Pipit is one of the few birds which have attempted
to breed in Heligoland ; " unfortunately the attempt was unsuccessful, for the nest
with four eggs of the type with brown spots like burnt marks, was destroyed by
cats ; it had been placed against a large tuft of grass in the middle of a large
hedged-in grass-plot, about a hundred paces in diameter, which adjoins my garden,
and was protected against every possible disturbance by human hand."
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The Meadow-Pipit. 195
Family— MOTA CILLID^.
The Meadow-Pipit.
Anthus pratensis, Linn.
ACCORDING to Howard Saunders the breeding range of this, the smallest
of our Pipits, " extends from the North Cape over the greater part of
Europe to the Pyrenees, the northern portions of Italy and the Carpathians, and
perhaps to some of the elevated regions still further south ; but in the basin of the
Mediterranean the bird is principally known as a visitor on migration and in
winter. Eastward, it is found in Asia Minor, Palestine, Western Turkestan, and
the valley of the Ob in Siberia ; while its southern wanderings reach North Africa,
from Morocco to Egypt."
Throughout Great Britain the Meadow-Pipit, otherwise known as Titlark,
Titling, Moss-cheeper, Ling-bird, etc., is resident, common, and generally distributed:
in the autumn the numbers of resident birds are temporarily largely added to, by
immense ilocks travelling southwards, and it is probable that many of the native
specimens join these migrating hordes which leave our coasts and are seen no
more until the following March : nevertheless great numbers remain with us during
the winter.
The adult male of this species is olive-brown above, the feathers having dark
centres, which however are less distinctly marked on the rump and upper tail-
coverts ; wings dark brown, the primaries with yellowish margins to the outer
webs ; the coverts and secondaries with whitish margins ; tail dark brown, the
outermost pair of feathers nearly half white, and the next pair with a white sub-
terminal spot ; a narrow dull- white superciliary stripe ; under surface almost white,
the sides of neck, breast, and flanks streaked with brownish-black : bill dark-brown,
the lower mandible paler towards the base ; feet pale brown, with long and slightly
curved hind-claw : iris dark brown. The female closely resembles the male, but is
less strongly streaked below. After the autumn moult the colouring both above
and below becomes yellower. Young birds are more buff" in tint, with the streaks
of the under surface smaller and browner.
This species is most abundant in summer on the upland moors, but is by no
igs British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
means confined to the mountains, for numbers may always be met with throughout
the year on the open commons, farm lands, and pastures of the plains ; towards
winter also, the higher and more exposed regions are deserted in favour of the
better sheltered localities of the lowlands, and particularly those near the sea-shore.
In its habits the Meadow-Pipit, as its name indicates, is much less arboreal than
the Tree-Pipit, perching far more frequently on bushes, rocks, or low walls than
on trees : its flight is similar to that of the Wagtails ; but like the Meadow- Pipit
it often indulges in an upward song-flight.
The song is not so loud or prolonged as that of Aiithiis trivialis, and Mr.
Charles A. Witchell says that it "rises crying, chiiwick chihvick chuwick, repeated
many times, and descends singing, bee tsee tsee repeated ; or else it changes the
accent from the first to the second syllable in the first cries, and ascends with
chuwick chmvick repeated, with the same ending as before." The call-note is des-
cribed as a low clear ist, often rapidly repeated, and the alarm-note as a short ivhit.
The nidification of the Meadow-Pipit usually commences in April, the nest
being almost always well concealed and invariably on the ground, frequently' in a
meadow, or on swampy ground among reeds, on a bank half hidden by coarse
grasses, and one which I found early in May, containing almost fledged nestlings,
was built in the middle of a mass of coarse grass on a mound in an opening near
the centre of a dense tangled Kentish shaw ; it has also been found in ling ; at
the foot of a bush ; in a cavity under an overhanging bank, or stone.
The materials of the nest consist of dry bents, and sometimes a little moss,
with a lining of finer grass or rootlets and hair ; like most other nests it varies
considerably in bulk and compactness. The eggs are not much unlike those of
the Rock-Pipit, excepting that they are smaller; in number they vary from four
to six, their ground-tint being greyish or greenish-white, more or less densely
mottled with olive-brown, often forming an ill-shaped zone towards the larger end,
where also dark hair-lines are frequently present. The Meadow- Pipit is usually
double-brooded.
The food of this species in the summer consists of insects and their larvae,
spiders, small centipedes, small worms, and fresh-water mollusca ; but in winter
when insect-food is scarce, small seeds and even grain are eaten.
Stevenson, in his " Birds of Norfolk," says : — " The Meadow-Pipit or Titlark
is one of the most common of our resident species, and generally distributed
throughout the country. On heaths and commons, by the banks of rivers, in
meadows and marshes, on the grassy summits of our lofty clifi^s, or the low marram
hills upon the sandy beach, the cheeping note of this familiar bird meets us at
every turn, and in more cultivated districts, it springs at our approach from the
The Meadow- Pi pit. 197
arable land, and, drifting like waste paper down the wind, is gone with a yhit,
yJiit, yhit, almost before we fairly see it. In summer it is nowhere more abundant
than in the district of the broads, where it sings from the top of the small alder
and sallow bushes, which are scattered in many places over the drier marshes and
cheeping as it ascends from a projecting spray, utters its simple but pleasing song,
with quivering wings and outspread tail, as it slowly descends to its station
again."
The above is the most characteristic description of the Titlark which I have
met with, and therefore I have not hesitated to quote it for the benefit of those
not conversant with this species.
My first experience of the Meadow- Pipit as an aviary bird was in October,
1888, when a bird-catcher brought me a male example which I turned into my outer
aviary : I found it perfectly harmless and amiable towards the other inhabitants of
the aviary, until other specimens of its species were associated with it ; and, having
no mate of its own, it took a great fancy to a Hedge- Sparrow, but the latter had
already made up to a Garden- Warbler : I recorded this in the "Zoologist" for
July, 1889, as follows: — "I frequently noticed my Hedge-Sparrow following the
Garden-Warbler about, and trying to entice him to pair with her ; on one occasion
I noticed her behaving in a similar manner towards the Pied- Wagtail, but both
birds treated her with the utmost indifference'; the Meadow-Pipit however strutted
about in the greatest excitement, and tried in every way to make up to her, though
she constantly gave a peck whenever he advanced near to her."
In November, 1889, nine Meadow- Pipits were brought to me by a bird-catcher,
who sold them to me at 2d. apiece ; they were all freshly netted and very wild.
I turned the whole of these birds out with that received the previous 3'ear, and
hoped that I should have the pleasure of hearing some of them sing in 1890; but
first the Hedge- Sparrow attacked and killed several of them, and then they began
quarrelling among themselves, fighting like little Game-cocks whenever they met,
so that by December only two remained alive, and even one of these succumbed
to its injuries before the end of the year, leaving a solitary hen.
To look at these elegant little birds one would never imagine that they could
exhibit evil passions ; but my experience clearly demonstrates the danger of
attempting to keep more than one male in an enclosure. The female which re-
mained and was so sprightly a bird, that for some months I imagined her to be
a male, eventually proved her sex by laying an ^^% in a nest built by a Canar}-
in one of the bushes, about two feet from the ground : it was an odd place for a
Titlark to lay in, but perhaps not so remarkable as the fact that a Canary, turned
loose into an aviary, and having no model to guide her, should have reverted to
198 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
the ancient nest of her species which her ancestors, probably for hnndreds of years,
had never seen. I am led to make these observations, because Charles Dixon in
his "Jottings about Birds," pp. 235-239, is so indignant with those who insist
that the architectural power of birds is instinctive. To my mind it is infinitely
more difficult to believe that besotted looking sleepy fledglings should be capable
of appreciating the intricacies of the nests which they are leaving, and should be
able so to fix them in their memories, as (a year afterwards) to be in a position
to reproduce them ; than that the art should be instinctive. Mr. Dixon has indeed
shown that some English Chaffinches taken to New Zealand built an aberrant
nest there ; but this proves absolutely nothing ; for abnormal nests are by no means
uncommon even in England : — I have a House- Sparrow's nest built like that of
a Duck, a large thick-walled open saucer (of the usual materials) placed in the
middle of a hawthorn bush ; I have a Spotted Flycatcher's nest built in a narrow
crevice in a brick- wall, and formed like a slipper ; with several other aberrant nests
to be mentioned later in the work : I have also proved that Goldfinches and Grey
Singing-finches in an aviary, prefer building their nests upon the floor of a Hartz-
Canary cage, to utilizing a bush. These facts clearly show that birds do not build
by imitation, but distinctly inherit and adapt their parents' handicraft, just as, in
a lesser degree, human beings do ; for it is a notorious fact that many artists are
able to trace their power to a direct ancestor, whether in painting, music, or even
logic. Moreover, as study is necessary to perfect our gifts, so also with young
birds several nests are often commenced and pulled to pieces before a satisfactory
result is attained. The bird in the nest sees next to nothing of its character, the
lining only is constantly before its eyes, and the lining is that part of the structure
which is formed mechanically, by the sqiiatting down and twisting round of the
parent bird : how then, even if it had a retentive memory, could it learn the method
of construction of the complete outer walls. To my mind this is infinitely more
inconceivable than that the power to build a certain type of nest should be inher-
ited ; the fact that heredity is not incapable of modification or blind, would explain
why a bird was still able to adapt the outline of its nest or even the materials to
altered conditions.
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The Red-Throated Pipit. The Tawny Pipit. 199
Family— MOTACILLID^.
The Red-Throated Pipit.
Anthus cervinus, Pall.
SEEBOHM rightly says that this bird has scarcely any valid claim to be
regarded as a British Bird. The first example recorded was obtained at
Unst, in 1854; a second was shot at Rainham, in Kent, in April, 1880; a
third was caught at Brighton, in 1884 ; and a fourth was obtained in Sussex,
in 1895. The species being a mere chance straggler to our shores when on
migration, and very rarely met with, a description of its habits would be out of
place in the present work.
Family— MOTA CILLID^.
The Tawny Pipit.
Anthus campestris, lylNN.
IT is quite possible that this species has been merely overlooked ; inasmuch as,
since its first discovery as an accidental visitor to Great Britain by the late
Mr. G. Dawson Rowley, a good many specimens have been obtained.
A summer visitor to Europe, this bird is said to breed in suitable localities
as far north as lat. 57°. In Northern Africa it appears to be partially resident, its
winter migrations extending through Egypt to Nubia and Abyssinia: in Western
200 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
Africa it is known to migrate as far as Damaraland. In Palestine it is resident,
and from Asia Minor it extends to Turkestan and North-western India.
' In Great Britain most of the examples of the Tawny Pipit which have been
obtaine'd have occurred at or near Brighton, but it has been shot as far to the
south as the Scilly Islands, and as far north as Bridlington, in Yorkshire.
According to Gatke this species " visits Heligoland in very small numbers ;
only now and again may a solitary example be met with on a fine warm afternoon
in May or August. Hardly more than three or four of the birds are shot in the
course of a year, though perhaps double the number, certainly not more, may
occur during that time."
The adult male in spring plumage is of a lighter or darker sandy-brown
colour, the centres of the feathers on the upper surface being darker, excepting
on the rump, darkest on the crown ; a buffish-white superciliary streak ; lores
dark-brown; ear-coverts greyish-brown; wing-coverts dark-brown, edged with buff;
flights brown, with tawny edges ; tail brown, the two outside feathers white,
suffused with sandy-brown ; the inner web partly brown ; the second pair brown
almost to the shaft : under surface buffish-white, deeper on the breast, which is
faintly streaked with brown ; upper mandible dark-brown, lower mandible yellowish ;
feet yellowish-brown; iris dark-brown. Female similar to the male, but slightly
smaller. After the autumn moult the colouring of both sexes is warmer. Birds
of the year are more tawny than adults, and have the sides of the throat and
breast somewhat conspicuously streaked.
As regards the haunts of this species, Seebohm says that in Greece "it seems
to prefer the open plains, and is very common in the almost treeless valley between
the Parnassus and Thermopyle." "It is especially common on the undulating
prairie country, half rock, and half grass and heath, between Athens and Marathon."
Dixon ("Jottings") speaking of it in Algeria, says that it is "most abundant
in winter. It breeds on the northern slopes of the Atlas, and in winter does not
appear to go further south than the Hants Plateaux." Of its habits, the same
author says : — " To look at its plumage one might almost suspect to meet with it
only in the desert ; but in summer, at any rate, it does not frequent that sandy
waste, and we only met with it on the elevated plateaux beyond Constantine and
in the neighbourhood of Batna and Lambessa. The road between these two latter
places runs through rich meadows and barley-fields, and abounded with Tawny
Pipits in abundance. I saw them only in pairs ; they were very tame, and often
allowed themselves to be almost trodden upon before they would take wing. I
often saw them running about very quickly over the bare pieces of ground, stop-
ping now and then to look round to see if they were being pursued. When
The Tawny Pipit. 201
flushed tliey would often fly for a little distance in a very straightforward manner
(not undulating, as their usual flight is) and perch on a little tuft of higher vege-
tation, or on a boulder, or even a paling. Many of the birds were on the road,
where 3'ou could witness their actions very closely as they ran up and down like
a Wagtail, often giving their tail a sharp jerk, accompanied by a flicking movement
of the wings. They seemed to especially prefer a large unenclosed plain of rough
land on which no crop was sown, what we should call summer fallow in England.
Here I repeatedly saw the birds soar into the air for a little way and sing their
loud but simple song, which put me in mind of the Sky-Lark's notes, although
not so rich or so sweet. It does not soar so high as the Tree-Pipit, and seems
anxious to get to the ground again. When alarmed by the report of a gun, the
birds close at hand would generally rise for some distance into the air and betake
themselves to safer quarters in a drooping flight, uttering a short ivhit or yliit as
they went." *
Col. L. H. Irby, speaking of Tawny Pipits on the Spanish side of the Straits
of Gibraltar, says : — " We never met with them on low ground, and there is no
doubt they breed high up on the sierras."
The Tawny Pipit is a late breeder, building its nest towards the end of May
under a shrub, amongst growing crops, beneath a tuft of rank herbage, or under
the shelter of a stone or clod of earth. The materials of the nest consist of dry
grass, bents, and roots, with a lining of horsehair : the eggs number from five to
six, greyish-, or creamy- white, streaked or spotted somewhat heavily with dark-
grey and purplish-, or ruddish-brown.
The food consists principally, if not entirely, of insects and their larvae, and
doubtless of spiders and small centipedes, as is the general habit of insectivorous
birds.
I should not anticipate that much satisfaction would be obtained from keeping
the Tawny Pipit either in cage or aviary, unless its natural tameness induced it
to sing : my Titlarks, although by no means unusually wild, never once sang in
confinement; yet they were in an aviary 16 feet long: their only charm therefore
consisted in their graceful actions, both on the ground and when flying ; but
neither in colouring or grace can they at all compare with Wagtails.
* O. V. Apliu (Zoologist, 1892, p. 14) says:— "Alarm-note chit, chit; song short, but with a few rather
good notes."
Vol. I. 2 L
ao2 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs
Family— MOTACILLID^.
Richard's Pipit.
Anthus richardi, ViElLL.
SINCE 1824 this species has been so frequently met with in Great Britain
that, although only an autumn straggler to our shores, it has fairly earned
its title to be considered a British bird : as regards its distribution on the Conti-
nent, Howard Saunders says : — " Richard's Pipit has been met with, as a rare
straggler, in the southern districts of Norway and Sweden ; but on Borkum, Heli-
goland, and along the coasts of Holland, Belgium, and France, it is not uncommon
on migration. In Central Europe it is rare, though in the south of France,
especially in Provence, it is not unfrequent ; near Malaga and throughout the south
of Spain it is in some years tolerably common from November to April ; while it
occurs irregularly in Italy, and in the basin of the Mediterranean, occasionally
visiting North Africa. Its usual breeding- grounds are not to be found west of
Turkestan ; in the valley of the Yenesei, Mr. Seebohm found both old and young
in August, up to 58° N. lat. ; and it nests abundantly on the elevated steppes of
Eastern Turkestan, the Lake Baikal district, and Mongolia. In winter it visits
South China, Burma, and the Indian region."
The first recognized British specimen of this species was caught near London,
in October, 181 2, and was recorded twelve years later; since then sixty or more
specimens have been noted, mostly from the south of England, and more particularly
from the coast of Sussex ; it has also been met with in Lincolnshire, Norfolk,
Oxford, Warwickshire, Shropshire, Lancashire, Cumberland, and Northumberland :
in Scotland it is said to have been seen in Banffshire.
When in breeding plumage Richard's Pipit above is of a sandy-brown colour ;
the feathers, excepting on the rump, with dark centres ; those of the upper tail-
coverts ill-defined ; wing-coverts tipped with tawny ; flights margined with buffish-
white ; two outermost tail-feathers white with dark margins to the outer webs, the
second pair also with dark shaft ; remaining feathers dark brown, the central pair
with pale edges ; under surface white, faintly tinted with buff, excepting on the
breast which is distinctly buff, and streaked with dark brown; a line of spots also
running up the sides of the neck to the base of the bill ; the latter is dark brown.
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RICHARD'S Pipit. 203
the lower mandible paler ; feet pale horn-brown ; iris hazel. The female is a little
smaller than the male, but similarly coloured. Young birds have whiter margins
to the feathers, and the under-surface streaking is more defined, extending also to
the flanks.
Speaking of the habits of this species in Siberia, Seebohm says : — " It delights
in wet pastures and rich meadows left for hay in northern climates, where the .
harvest is late, and it can build its nest in the long grass, and rear its young
before the mowers come to disturb it, and where it can find abundance of food
in the short grass after the hay is cleared away, just when the young are most
voracious. These conditions it finds to perfection in the flat meadows that stretch
away, often for miles, on the banks of the great rivers of Central Siberia, and
which are overflowed for some days when summer suddenly comes, and the snow
melts, and the ice on the river breaks up. I found Richard's Pipit extremely
abundant in the meadows on the banks of the Yenesay, near Yenesaisk. The
country is almost a dead flat for miles, and is intersected with half dried-up river-
beds and chains of swampy lakes, full of tall sedges and reeds and water-plants of
various kinds, and half concealed by the willow-bushes and alders, whilst far away
in the distance the horizon is bounded on every side by the forest. These oases
of grass in the boundless forest are the paradise of Richard's Pipit."
Speaking of it in India, Jerdon says : — " It always affects swampy or wet
ground, grassy beds of rivers, edges of tanks, and especially wet rice-fields, either
singly or in small parties. Its flight is strong and undulating, and it flies some
distance in general before it alights again."
With regard to its note Brooks states that it is "a soft double chirp, reminding
one strongly of the note of a Bunting." Dr. Scully says that its note as it rises
from the ground is a sweet soft twitter: the call-note is said to be "soft but
loud." Herr Gatke however observes : — "According to my own experience, extending
over more than fifty years, during which time thousands of these birds have come
under my notice, this call-note consists of a loud, rapid and harshly ejaculated r-
r-riiiip, sounding, in the case of young birds, almost like r-r-recp ; this is confirmed
by the local name of this bird, which is derived from its call-note. This note the
bird utters only once at every rise, except in some rare cases when, after being
surprised, it rises suddenly, repeating r-r-rilp-riipp several times in quick succession.
As the bird flies almost always at a good height, and its extremely original call-
note is audible at a great distance, it betrays its presence to the shooter while
still far away; when the call-note is no longer heard, one may conclude with
certainty that the bird has settled on the ground.
In the manner of its flight this Pipit partly resembles the Wagtails, partly
204 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
the Larks. If it is flying over a considerable distance at a not very great elevation,
it progresses in wide and shallow undulations, not however in so striking a manner
as the Wagtails. Its flight at considerable elevations is more like that of the
Larks. Arrived at the goal of its flight, the bird executes a fluttering or shaking
movement before descending, previously for a moment surveying the place on which
it intends to make sure that no danger is lurking for it there. In the course of
its elevated flight it frequently halts for a moment in a similar manner."
The nest of this species, which appears not to have been described, but which
doubtless resembles those of other Pipits, is built early in June in a depression in
the earth among grass ; the eggs, which number from four to six, are greenish-
white or pinkish-white, spotted and blotched with various shades of brown : they
somewhat resemble those of the Rock-Pipit excepting in size.
When on the earth Richard's Pipit progresses much in the same fashion as
its allies, by running ; its food also consists chiefly of insects, their larvae, and
doubtless of spiders. Captain Legge states that in Ceylon it often seizes a passing
butterfly on the wing. In an aviary it would doubtless eat the same soft food as
that already recommended for insectivorous birds.
Gatke says: — "I kept a young autumn bird of this species, slightly grazed
on the wing by a shot, for several days alive in a large cage, in company with
several Buntings and Finches, with which it agreed verj' well. The bird was not
at all shy or wild, but ran about nimbly and cheerfully, and also accepted readil}*,
and within my immediate neighbourhood,* some maimed flies which were offered
it. Unfortunately, I was not prepared for maintaining an insect-feeder, and, much
to my chagrin, was obliged to kill it, so as to avoid torturing it uselessly. I was
the more sorry for this, as I felt convinced that I could quite easily have kept it
alive with ants' eggs, for it is a hardy and by no means a delicate bird."
If Herr Gatke had only been aware of the fact that all insectivorous birds
are passionately fond of j^olk of egg, and that it suits them well, he need not
have been unhappy, or unnecessarily have taken the life of his pet ; moreover, with
a canvas bag at the end of a stick, he could (in a few minutes) have swept up
as many insects, spiders, etc., as would have provided his Pipit with a substantial
meal. Meanwhile, he could have written for a supply of dried ants' cocoons and
preserved yolk of egg ; and on this diet, with the addition of bread-crumbs and
potato, his bird would have lived happily through the winter. The moral of which
is that, before attempting to keep birds, one should know more about them than
can be learnt from purel}' scientific works.
* This strikes me as a'bad translation : it should (I think) be— '• when I was close to it."— A. O. R.
o
H
o
o
The Water-Pipit. The Rock-Pipit. 305
Family— MOTA CILLID^.
The Water-Pipit.
Anthus spipoletta, Linn.
ONIvY four examples of this species, all from Sussex, have been recognized :
I therefore do not consider that (at present) it has much claim to be
regarded as British : at best it is but a chance and very rare straggler to our
shores.
Family— MOTACILLIDyE.
The Rock-Pipit.
Anthus obscurus, Lath.
SEEBOHM says that the " Rock- Pipit is little more than a coast-form of the
Water- Pipit, and appears to be confined to the rocky portions of the coasts
of North-western Europe, from the White Sea to the Bay of Biscay. It is found
on the shores of the Baltic ; but there is no satisfactory evidence of its frequenting
those of the Mediterranean. It is a resident throughout its range, except in the
extreme north."
" The Rock-Pipit is a resident on all the coasts of the British Islands, with
the exception of the low-lying eastern shores south of Spurn, where it only appears
as a straggler or on migration. It is found commonly in the Channel Islands, in
the Hebrides, St. Kilda, the Orkneys, and Shetland, and is also common in the
Faeroes, although not known to visit Iceland or Greenland."
John Cordeaux in his " Birds of the Humber District," says that this species
2o6 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
" Occasionally occurs during the autumn within the Humber, either on the sea
embankments or along the borders of the marsh drains."
This apparent discrepancy between the statements of Seebohm and Cordeaux
is explained by Howard Saunders, who observes : — " generally frequenting, during
the breeding-season, those portions of the sea-coast which are of a rocky nature-
conditions which are not found between the Thames and Humber ; although during
autumn and winter it is found on salt-marshes and in the muddy estuaries where
there is sea-weed."
The adult male in the spring is olive-brown above, streaked, excepting on the
rump, with dark-bro^vn, the outer pair of tail-feathers is characterized by an oblique
smoky-grey patch on the inner web ; * an ill-defined buihsh superciliary stripe ;
chin whitish ; remainder of under surface buff, warmer on the breast, and more
olivaceous on the flanks, which, together with the throat and breast, are streaked
with dark brown : bill deep brown, the lower mandible paler at the base ; feet
brown ; iris hazel. The female resembles the male. In the autumn the plumage
of the upper parts becomes more olivaceous and that of the under parts yellower.
The young are more heavily streaked on the flanks than adults.
As I never had an opportunity of studying this bird in its wild haunts — the
cliffs, rocks, and lowlands of our sea shores, and the desolate islands near our
coasts — consequently I never personally took its nest ; it was therefore with great
pleasure that I examined a series of clutches of the eggs obtained at Uist, in May
1884, by Mr. T. Copeland, and forwarded by him to Mr. Harting. A clutch of
five eggs was consequently presented to me by Mr. Copeland.
Gatke (The Birds of Heligoland) says that this species " is a solitary, serious
creature, little caring for the society either of members of its own or of other
species. While searching for food, it walks step by step, only rarely at an accel-
erated pace, over the sea-tang on the shore, or on the rocks and debris exposed at
low tide at the base of the cliff". It utters its call-note only when taking to flight,
a single call repeated after rather long pauses. The note is deeper and longer
drawn than that of the Meadow-Pipit, and has an agreeable sound, by no means
harsh like that of the Tree- Pipit ; if the bird is suddenly surprised, it often in
flying away utters its call two or three times in succession. It is by no means a
shy bird, and never flies very far ; if repeatedl}' disturbed while busy at the foot
of the cliff", it flits from one piece of rock to another, never more than fifteen or
twenty paces at a time, finally perching on a prominence half way up the face of
the cliff, where it will quietly wait until one has passed along underneath it, after
which it will resume its occupation on the shore."
* In the Water-Pipit this patch is white.
The Rock-Pipit. 207
Regarding the song of this species, Seebohm says : — " Like all the other
Pipits, the Rock-Pipit seldom sings except on the wing. When it is in full song
its notes are very musical, and rival those of the Meadow-Pipit, but can scarcely
compare with those of the Tree- Pipit, either in variety, richness, or duration. In
the pairing-season the Rock-Pipit sings incessantly, mounting into the air and
gliding down again to his rocky perch on fully expanded wings and tail. The
first really fine day in early spring is the signal for commencement of the song,
and it is continued until the young are hatched. The call-note of this bird is a
shrill hist or pst, most pertinaceously kept up if it is seriously alarmed or its nest
is in danger. This call-note is uttered both when the bird is sitting on the rocks
or the ground, or when fluttering in the air ; and it often soars to the zenith of
its flight uttering it quickly, and then returns to its perch in full song." *
Mr. O. V. Aplin (Zoologist, 1892, p. 14) speaking of the Alpine Pipit, says: —
" The song reminds one of the Rock- Pipit's, to which I had been listening at
Dover — zig zig zig zi zi zi zi, running down and becoming quicker at the end."
The nest is generally' formed towards the end of April, on or close to the
sea-shore, but sometimes in a cavity several hundred feet up the side of a clifi"; it
is often placed in a crevice in the rocks, or in a wall, a hole in a bank, a rabbit-
burrow, in a clump of sea-pink, or behind a heap of sea-weed. The materials vary
according to its situation, the basis being dry grass, sometimes intermingled with
sea-weed, the stalks of various plants, or moss ; and lined, either with fine grass
or hair. The eggs var}^ in number from four to five, and in colouring exhibit
much the same variations as eggs of the Skylark, the ground colour being greenish-
white, speckled all over with grey, and usually mottled (most densely towards the
larger end) with olive-brown : some eggs are heavily blotched and some are zoned,
the general tint is also sometimes redder than usual, but I have not hitherto seen
the variety described by Howard Saunders — " reddish ones, like those of a Tree-
Pipit," unless he means the reddish-tinged (and not the reddish-chocolate) variety
of that bird's &gg.
The food of the Rock- Pipit consists of insects and their larvae, but more
especially the flies which are attracted to rotten sea-weed, also the innumerable
small mollusca and Crustacea to be found among sea-weed and occasionally seeds,
but particularly in winter.
Swaysland has kept the Rock- Pipit in confinement, and recommends that it
should be fed in the same way as a Woodlark ; but the food which he advises to
be given to all insectivorous birds is in the highest degree unnatural, consisting
• This statement seems to imply that the call- and alarm-notes are identical : if true, this is a somewhat
aberrant case. — A. G. B.
2o8 British Birds, with their Nests and Eggs.
largely of chopped raw meat, German paste, etc. I have not the least doubt that
any of the advertised egg-foods, mixed with bread-crumbs and moistened, would
be infinitely more wholesome as a staple : to this I would add for the present
species, cockroaches, mealworms, spiders, centipedes, and caterpillars, as well as
small snails. Although most birds do not care for woodlice, it is not improbable
that the Rock- Pipit would eat them.
Being considerably larger than the Meadow-, or Tree-Pipits, it would be
necessary to use judgment as to the associates of this species : moreover, as the
gentle looking Pipits are even more pugnacious than Wagtails, it would be very
unwise to place two males together in the same aviary. Even one male should
be watched at first, for individuals of the family Motacillida sometimes make things
lively for an aviary full of birds twice their own size, and infinitely more powerful
than themselves.
ADDENDA.
The Siberian Ground-Thrush, p. 28.
Dr. H. O. Forbes says that he on several occasions, during the terrible frost
of 1894-5, saw two of these birds in his garden at Liverpool, feeding in company
with Starlings, Sparrows, Thrushes, and Blackbirds : he was quite close, and able
to identify them with certainty ; he even made an unsuccessful attempt to catch
them.
The Icterine Warbler, p. 107.
Three examples have now been killed in Norfolk, the last at Cley so recently
as the 7th September, 1896. Mr. Frohawk received an &<g% believed to be referable
to this species in a miscellaneous collection made in Norfolk, but the fact of
its ever having nested in Great Britain cannot be accepted on such unsatis-
factory evidence.
END OF VOLUME ONE.
BRUMBY AND CI,ARKE, I,TD., PRINTERS, HULI, AND LONDON.
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