66 THE NESTS AND EGGS OF 



been found on the twigs of willows (^fide Hartert), and it 

 has been known, according to the same authority, " high 

 up in a birch tree." The nest is large and strongly put 

 together, funnel-shaped and deep, and the conical base 

 which supports the cup of the nest is often bulky. 

 Externally the nest is made of the dry withered leaves 

 of the reeds, intermixed with a few roots and withered 

 reed flowers, and lined with the latter together with a 

 few grass stems. Sometimes one or two leaves growing 

 on the selected reeds are interwoven with the nest, and 

 some nests are lined with scraps of moss, vegetable down, 

 or even a few feathers. Externally it is about five inches 

 in height, but not more than half this space is occupied 

 by the cavity containing the eggs. When disturbed 

 from the nest the parent birds evince considerable 

 anxiety, venturing close to the intruder, and resenting 

 interference with their home by uttering croaking notes 

 of displeasure. 



Range of egg colouration and measurement : 

 The cG^G^s of the Great Reed Warbler are from four to 

 six in number. They vary from pale greenish-blue to 

 blue more strongly tinged with pale green or gray, 

 blotched and spotted with olive-brown and russet-brown, 

 and with underlying markings of gray. The markings 

 are generally very handsome and bold blotches, inter- 

 mixed with smaller spots, and the gray underlying 

 markings are pretty evenly distributed over the entire 

 surface. The eggs vary much in size : average measure- 

 ment, '9 inch in length by '65 inch in breadth. Incuba- 

 tion, performed chiefly by the female, lasts, according to 

 Thienemann, fourteen or fifteen days. 



Diagnostic characters : The eggs of the Great 

 Reed Warbler are readily distinguished from those of 

 allied species by their much larger size. 



