174 BRITISH BIBDS 



mind by the raven is, doubtless, in part due to the bird's reputation, 

 to its ancient historical fame, its large place in our older literature, 

 and to the various sombre superstitions connected with it. "When 

 feeding on a carcase his appearance is not engaging: there is a 

 lack of dignity in his sidling or * loping ' motions, and savage haste 

 in tearing at the flesh, with a startled look round after each morsel. 

 "When disturbed from his repast the slow, cumbrous, flapping 

 flight as he rises strongly reminds you of the vulture. He makes a 

 nobler figure when soaring high in the air, or along the face of 

 some huge beetling cliff that fronts the sea ; for then his flight has 

 power and ease as he falls and rises, playing, like a giant chough 

 or jackdaw, with his mate. 



The raven pairs for life, and uses the same nest year after year. 

 A pair or two may still breed in a tree somewhere in Scotland or 

 in the north of England, but, in almost all cases, the bird now 

 makes his nest on a ledge of rock on some cliff on the sea-coast. 

 It is a rude, bulky structure, formed of sticks and heather, and 

 lined with grass and wool. The eggs are four to six in number, 

 bluish green in ground-colour, more or less thickly spotted and 

 marked with dark olive-brown. 



The raven is the earliest bird to breed in this country : the 

 nest-building begins in January, and the eggs are laid in February 

 or March. 



Besides the eight species described, a ninth member of the 

 corvine family has been included among British birds ; this is the 

 nutcracker (Nucifraga caryocatactes)^ a very irregular straggler to 

 our shores from northern Europe. 



Skylark. 

 Alauda arvensis. 



Upper parts varied with three shades of brown, the darkest of 

 which lies along the shaft of each feather ; a faint whitish streak 

 over the eye ; throat white ; xmder parts yellowish white tinged 

 with brown ; the throat and sides of neck with dark brown lanceolate 

 spots, which form a gorget just above the breast. Length, seven 

 inches and a quarter. 



The skylark is so universally diffused in these islands, and so 

 abundant, well known, and favourite a species, that anything beyond 



