146 



DENTTROSTRES. 



SUB-FAMILY VI. 



MOTACILLIN.^. 



7'he Wagtails. 



Gen. Charac— Bill slender, angular between the nostrils, the upper man- 

 dible notched ; wings with one of the scapulars as long as the closed wing ; 

 tail long ; legs long. 



^JJ'.^i'/ 



Fig. 59. — THE WHITE WAGTAIL. 



(Motacilla alba.) 



These well-known birds frequent meadows and 

 humid or marshy places^ delighting in the borders of 

 rivulets and ponds. 



The White Wagtails have a mode of life peculiar 

 to themselves, and more readily approach man and 

 his habitation than the rest of their congeners : the 

 others, more wild, inhabit the vicinity of meadows. 

 The former prefer stagnant waters; the latter are 

 generally seen on the borders of springs and running 

 streams. Both run with the cattle, fly about the 

 labourer, and follow the plough, in pursuit of smal" 



