112 CATALOGUE OF BIRDS. 



the way of food. Sparrows are certainly most 

 destructive in the cornfields, for I have seen them 

 sitting in flocks upon the heads of wheat or oats, 

 and eating for all they were worth ; no doubt they 

 do a lot of damage to fruit trees. Although there is 

 hardly a spot in our islands where the Sparrow is 

 not present in thousands, I must say, that when 

 fishing in the Hebrides I don't remember seeing 

 one, but they are probably there by this. 



The Hedge-Sparrow. 

 Family, Turdidce. 

 This is a jolly, homely little bird, quite a little 

 pet ; not quite so domestic, perhaps, as the Robin, 

 but still in the winter time, when there are any 

 scraps near our windows, this little chap is not likely 

 to be far off Then it is such a symmetrical bird, 

 so perfectly proportioned with such dainty legs and 

 feet, that how it could ever come to be named after 

 our common cheeky House Sparrow is not easy to 

 understand. To begin with, it is not a true Sparrow, 

 being in a family almost exclusively its own, nor is 

 it in form or general habit anything like one. 

 When one pictures the Hedge Sparrow it is 

 generally in connection with some of our thickest 

 thorn hedges, wherein it delights to dwell, flitting 

 about from twig to twig. Its nest is generally made 

 in such a hedge or tangled bushes not far from the 

 ground. The materials are roots and moss, with 

 hair and wool for a lining — a very neat little 



