I04 OUR FAVOURITE SONG BIRDS 



very far above the ground, and is usually placed In 

 a whitethorn hedge, amongst briars and brambles, 

 in low bushes or heaps of hedge-clippings. Less 

 frequently it may be seen amongst ivy, or in ever- 

 green bushes and gorse-coverts. The nest is made 

 externally of moss, dry grass, dead leaves and a few 

 slender twigs ; internally of hair, wool, and feathers. 

 The cup is deep and exquisitely rounded. The 

 eggs are from four to six in number and are of a 

 beautiful turquoise-blue, without spots of any kind. 

 Boih parents incubate them, the sitting bird re- 

 maining on the nest until the last moment, and then 

 fluttering away into the cover without further demon- 

 stration. This species is much attached to its nesting- 

 place, and for years will build its mossy home in one 

 locality. Many nests come to grief, through being 

 made in exposed situations ; indeed the nest of 

 the "Dunnock" is the school-boy's first and most 

 frequent prize in the earlier months of the year. 

 Several broods are reared during the course of the 

 spring and summer, the nesting season of this species 

 extending from February to July. The Hedge 

 Accentor, in our islands, is one of the Cuckoo's most 

 favourite foster-parents. 



The food of this species consists of small worms, 

 insects and larvae, and small seeds of various kinds. 

 In winter the bird frequently comes near to houses 

 to pick up any scattered crumbs, and Is often seen 

 near piggeries or in fowl-runs and farm-yards. 



