456 EMBERIZA SCHCENICULUS. 



among stems of Arundo Phragmites. The nest is composed of 

 dry stalks and blades of grasses, bits of rushes, and other simi- 

 lar materials, and is neatly lined with finer grasses and hair. 

 The eggs, four or five in number, are of a short ovate form, 

 nine and a half twelfths of an inch long, seven and a lialf 

 twelfths broad, of a dull yellowish-grey colour, marked chiefly 

 on the larger end with tortuous or angular lines, and irregular 

 spots of black. 



Young. — The young when fledged are similar to the adult 

 female, but with duller tints, and the cheeks of a brownish- 

 grey colour. The males may be distinguished by having the 

 head and throat faintly marked with black. 



